:'.,.;;:■ 


•  II 


Agric.   Dept.    Agric.  Educ 


ADVERTISING 
AND    SELLING 


ADVERTISING 
AND    SELLING 

PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL 
AND   RESPONSE 


BY 

HARRY  L.  HOLLINGWORTH 

INSTRUCTOR    IN    PSYCHOLOGY    IN    COLUMBIA    UNIVERSITY,    NEW    YORK    CITY;     LECTURER    IN 
BUSINESS   PSYCHOLOGY,    SCHOOL   OF   COMMERCE,   NEW    YORK    UNIVERSITY. 


PUBLISHED     FOR    THE    ADVERTISING 
MEN'S  LEAGUE  OF  NEW  YORK  CITY,  INC. 

D.    APPLETON    AND    COMPANY 
NEW  YORK   AND   LONDON 

1920 


i 


Copyright,  191S,  by  the 
ADVERTISING  MEN'S  LEAGUE  OF  NEW  YORK  CITY,  INC. 

A6R1C  DEFT.    far*.  EJucafa 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


PEEFACE 

This  book  has  resulted  from  the  cooperative 
attempt,  on  the  part  of  a  group  of  practical  busi- 
ness men  and  one  or  two  individuals  whose  in- 
terests were  chiefly  scientific,  (a)  to  formulate 
and  systematize  those  facts  and  laws  which  re- 
late to  the  processes  of  appeal  and  response  in 
the  selling  and  advertising  of  goods,  and  (b)  to 
undertake  investigations  which  might  result  in 
the  discovery  of  new  facts  and  principles  of  both 
practical  and  scientific  interest.  This  attempt 
has  proceeded  on  the  basis  of  four  distinct  aims, 
which  it  is  well  to  have  clearly  in  mind.  These 
aims  have  been: 

(1)  To  sort  out,  from  the  general  body  of 
psychological  doctrine,  such  principles  as  under- 
lie the  mental  processes  involved  in  creating,  pre- 
senting and  reacting  to  appeals  which  are  pre- 
sented in  the  form  of  advertisements,  arguments, 
selling  talks,  etc. ;  to  state  these  in  systematic 
form  for  convenient  acquisition  and  reference  by 
the  active  and  prospective  business  man. 

(2)  To  examine  such  various  methods,  media 
and  devices  as  have  proven  clearly  successful  or 

v 

500388 


VI 


PREFACE 


unsuccessful  in  known  circumstances,  places,  and 
with  different  commodities,  and  to  deduce  and 
formulate  any  principles  revealed  by  such  com- 
parative study. 

(3)  To  carry  on,  in  a  cooperative  way,  new 
experiments  and  investigations,  by  exact  scien- 
tific methods,  and  with  the  definite  intention  of 
helping  to  render  the  technique  of  the  laboratory 
more  and  more  serviceable  in  handling  the  prac- 
tical problems  of  daily  business  life. 

(4)  To  devise  accurate  and  reliable  methods  of 
testing  beforehand  the  probable  value  of  appeals 
which  are  intended  for  actual  use  in  advertising 
and  selling,  (a)  by  more  exact  study  of  the  known 
principles  of  appeal  and  response  and  their  ap- 
plications in  business  transactions,  and  (b)  by  a 
comparison  of  laboratory  tests  with  keyed  results 
produced  by  the  appeals  in  business  campaigns. 

The  results  of  this  cooperative  attempt  are  pre- 
sented in  the  chapters  which  follow.  The  first 
line  of  work  will  constitute  the  skeleton  of  the 
book,  and  the  results  of  the  other  inquiries  will 
be  introduced  by  way  of  illustration  and  proof  of 
the  principles  presented. 

The  book  is  intended  primarily  for  the  general 
reader  and  for  the  student  with  practical  rather 
than  theoretical  interests.  It  does  not  pretend 
to  present  nor  even  to  conform  to  any  particular 


PREFACE  vii 

" system' '  of  academic  psychology,  but  aspires  to 
render  more  concretely  serviceable,  within  a  par- 
ticular field,  the  accepted  facts,  laws  and  methods 
resulting  from  the  experimental  study  of  human 
nature  and  human  behavior.  But  it  is  hoped  that 
the  professional  student  of  human  nature  may 
also  find  the  motive  and  method  of  the  book  to 
be  at  least  suggestive,  and  in  that  sense  valuable. 
In  its  original  form  the  book  consisted  of  a 
series  of  lectures  given,  during  several  successive 
years,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Advertising 
Men's  League  of  New  York  City.  This  fact  de- 
termined the  practical  bearing  of  the  material 
presented.  It  is  quite  impossible  to  give  due 
credit  to  all  whose  work  has  been  of  service  to  the 
writer  in  this  undertaking.  From  the  practical 
point  of  view  the  suggestions  and  criticisms  of 
the  members  and  chairmen  of  the  League  Round 
Tables  have  been  invaluable.  On  the  scientific 
side,  an  attempt  is  made  in  the  bibliography  to 
indicate  the  chief  sources  which  have  been  specifi- 
cally utilized.  But  I  must  render  particular 
thanks  to  the  many  members  of  my  college  classes 
whose  zeal  and  labor  have  made  many  of  the  ex- 
periments possible.  I  am  under  especial  obliga- 
tion to  Dr.  E.  K.  Strong,  Jr.,  at  one  time  assist- 
ant in  the  Barnard  laboratory,  and  since  Re- 
search Fellow,  in  Columbia  University,  for  the 


vifi  PREFACE 

Advertising  Men's  League  and  the  National  As- 
sociation of  Advertising  Managers,  for  his  con- 
stant interest  and  assistance,  and  for  a  great 
amount  of  data,  more  specifically  referred  to  in 
the  text. 

But,  above  all,  the  very  existence  of  the  book, 
the  opportunity  of  preparing  it,  and  very  much  of 
such  concreteness  and  value  as  the  book  may  con- 
tain are  due  to  the  untiring  activity  and  the  stim- 
ulating professional  ideals  of  Mr.  Wm.  H.  Inger- 
soll,  President  of  the  Advertising  Men's  League. 
It  was  under  his  leadership  that  the  Round  Table 
Study  Course  was  conceived  and  effectually  or- 
ganized, and  through  his  suggestions  and  advice 
that  the  course  on  Principles  of  Appeal  and  Re- 
sponse was  originally  planned. 

Harry  L.  Hollingworth. 
Columbia  University, 
New  York. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGES 

I. — Measuring  the  Strength  of  an  Appeal  1-16 

Machinery  Advertisements — Soap  Adver- 
tisements— Electric  Light  Advertisements. 

II. — The  Nervous  Basis  of  Mental  Processes        17-27 

III. — The  Analysis  of  Task  and  Media   .    .    .        28-45 
The     Task  —  Analysis     of    Advertising 
Types — Media. 

IV. — The  First  Task  :    Catching  the  Attention        46-59 

Causes  of  Attention — Results  and  Laws 
of  Attention. 

V. — Mechanical   Incentives 60-90 

Intensity  —  Magnitude  —  Motion  —  Con- 
trast— Isolation — Position. 

VI. — Interest  Incentives 91-126 

Novelty — Color — Cuts  and  Illustrations — 
Suggested  Activity — The  Comic — Feeling 
Tone,  Instinct  and  Habit. 

VII. — An  Experimental  Test  of  the  Relative 
Attention  and  Memory  Value  of  the 
Mechanical  and  Interest  Devices  .    .    127-131 

VIII. — The  Second  Task  :  Holding  the  Attention    128-141 
Mechanical  Helps — Interest  Devices. 

IX. — Feeling  Tone  of  Form 142-157 

Lines — Closed  Forms — Principles  of  De- 
sign. 

ix 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGES 

X. — Feeling  Tone  of  Content 158-188 

Character  of  Colors — Color  Combinations 
— Color  Balance — Feeling  Tone  and  Im- 
agination— Strain  and  Relaxation. 

XL — The  Third  Task:  Fixing  the  Impression  1S9-215 
Principles  of  Connection — Laws  of  Origi- 
nal Connection — Principles  of  Revival — 
Minor  Devices — Memorability  of  Different 
Kinds  of  Facts — Trade  Marks — Vicarious 
Sacrifices  in  Advertising. 

XII. — The  Fourth    Task:   Provoking  the   Re- 
sponse           216-236 

Direct  Appeals  to  Feeling — The  Nature 
and  Laws  of  Suggestion — The  Laws  of 
Suggestion. 

XIII. — Instincts,  Their  Nature  and  Strength    .    237-252 

XIV. — The   Relative    Strength   of   the    Chief 

Instincts  and  Interests 253-2S6 

Summary. 

XV. — Sex  and  Class  Differences  of  Interest 

to    Business    Men 2S7-305 

Sex    Differences — Age    and    Class   Differ- 
ences. 
Books  and  Articles  Referred  to  in  the 
Text    or    Recommended    for    Further 
Reading 0    «,    o  306 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS   AND 
DIAGRAMS 


PAGES 


Machinery  advertisements 6,  7 

Soap  advertisements 12,  13 

A   long   circuit   appeal 23 

A  short  circuit  appeal 25 

A   classified   appeal 32 

Publicity  appeal   34 

Publicity  appeal   34 

Display  appeal    ". 36 

Display  appeal 37 

Forms  of  focal  points  of  attention 47 

An  experiment  on  attention 57 

Graphite    advertisements    .  : 68,  69,  70 

White   on  black 77 

Attention  value  of  isolation 79 

Absence  of  counter  attraction 80 

Novelty  as  an  effective   attention  device 93 

The  conventional    94 

The  novel   95 

Curves  showing  visual  acuity  with  lights  of  differ- 
ent colors   97 

Chromatic  aberration  in  the  human  eye 104 

Illustration  as  an  attention  and  interest  device.  . .  .106 

The  use  of  illustration 107 

A  strictly  relevant  illustration 110 

xi 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS  AND  DIAGRAMS 

PAGES 

An  irrelevant   illustration Ill 

A  remotely  relevant  illustration Ill 

Irrelevant  illustration   112 

Violating  the  law  of  the  resting  point 116 

Illustrating  the  law  of  the  resting  point 117 

The  objective  comic.     The  calamity 121 

The  objective  comic.    The  naive 122 

The  subjective  comic.     Play  on  words. 123 

The  subjective  comic.     Play  on  words 124 

Influence  of  repetition  on  the  objective  comic...  125 
Influence  of  repetition  on  the  subjective  comic.  . .  .126 

Figures  appearing  to  change  character 134 

Cards  from  New  York  Subway 135 

Securing  unity  through  structure .  136 

An  attempt  to  secure  unity  by  mechanical  means.  .138 
The  fine  black  line,  suggesting  precision  and  hard- 
ness    143 

The    broad    black    line,    suggesting    solidity    and 
weight   144 

Appropriate  use  of  horizontal  lines 145 

Inappropriate  use  of  diagonal  lines 146 

Feeling  tone  from  direction  of  lines 148 

Rhythm  in  design 152,  153 

Balance  of  mass  against  vista 155 

Mechanical   balance   of   mass   against  mass 155 

The  law  of  balance  disregarded 156 

Harmonious    coordination    of    subject,    type    and 
trade   mark    167 

Type  faces  suggesting  refinement  and  delicacy  of 

the  texture   167 

Inappropriate   feeling  tone 174 

Feeling  tone  of  associations  inappropriately  used.  .175 

Strain    178 

xii 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS  AND  DIAGRAMS 

PAGES 

Relaxation 179 

Use  of  lower  case  letters  and  of  favorable  length 
of  line.. 180 

Illegibility  resulting  from  the  exclusive  use  of  capi- 
tal letters  182 

Illegibility  and  strain  is  produced  by  too  great 
variety  of  type  faces,  interrupted  lines  and  in- 
effective   spacing    183 

Illustrating  the  ease  of  reading  and  feeling  of 
relaxation  produced  by  the  use  of  lower  case 
letters  and  by  the  presence  of  appropriate 
spacing 184 

Forward   reasoning — correct    arrangement.— 194 

Backward   reasoning — incorrect   arrangement 195 

The  curve  of  forgetting 203 

Relative  attention  value  of  fifty  geometrical  forms. 213 

General  and  specific  appeals 240,  241,  242,  243 


.  '    ■ 


PRINCIPLES    OF   APPEAL   AND 

RESPONSE 

CHAPTER   I 

MEASURING    THE    STRENGTH    OF    AN    APPEAL 

One  of  the  first  tasks  of  any  science  is  that  of 
devising  methods  of  measurement.  There  could 
be  no  science  of  physics  without  the  possibility  of 
measuring  forces,  velocities,  magnitudes,  temper- 
atures, etc.  Experimental  psychology  arose  only 
when  men  began  to  succeed  in  measuring  the  in- 
tensity, speed,  uniformity  and  difference  of  men- 
tal and  motor  processes.  In  so  far  as  salesman- 
ship is  to  be  scientific  it  must  also  evolve  methods 
of  measuring  its  materials. 

Now  the  first  step  in  any  business  transaction 
is  the  presentation  of  what  we  may  call,  for  the 
sake  of  convenience  and  simplicity,  an  appeal. 
This  appeal  may  take  the  form  of  an  advertise- 
ment, an  informal  selling  talk,  or  a  more  direct 
proposition  such  as  a  form  or  personal  letter  or 
circular,  or  it  may  consist  merely  in  the  knowl- 

l 


PRINCIPLES    GY    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

edge,  on  the  part  of  the  customer,  that  a  given 
commodity  possesses  certain  desirable  qualities, 
will  accomplish  certain  results,  etc.  It  will  be 
seen  at  once  that  all  salesmen  are  not  equally 
persuasive,  all  advertisements  are  not  equally  ef- 
fective, nor  are  all  qualities  or  results  equally 
valuable.  A  question  of  prime  importance,  then, 
is:  "How  is  it  possible  to  determine  the  strength, 
the  l pulling  power'  of  an  appeal V  If  such  meas- 
urement is  possible,  this  will  be  the  first  step 
in  the  application  of  scientific  method  to  this 
field. 

It  is,  of  course,  obvious  that  the  relative 
strength  of  appeals  may  be  measured  by  the  de- 
termination of  the  actual  results :  the  number 
of  inquiries,  the  amount  of  sales,  the  cost  per 
sale,  the  demand  for  the  articles,  etc.  Attempts 
to  make  these  measurements  have  always  been 
made.  The  sales  of  each  salesman  have  been 
checked  up  with  those  of  others,  advertisements 
have  been  keyed,  by  means  of  different  addresses, 
street  or  box  numbers,  differently  numbered  cata- 
logues, etc.  The  effects  of  changes  in  location, 
new  methods  of  display,  etc.,  have  been  judged 
by  the  subsequent  changes  in  output.  But  two 
difficulties  in  the  use  of  these  methods  are  appar- 
ent at  once. 

2 


MEASURING    STRENGTH    OF    AN    APPEAL 

In  the  first  place  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  to 
trace,  with  any  precision,  the  actual  effect  of  an 
appeal  already  presented.  Innumerable  disturb- 
ing factors  complicate  the  calculation:  the  sea- 
son, the  medium,  the  activities  of  competitors  and 
imitators,  the  method  of  sale  (whether  retail, 
wholesale,  mail  order,  etc.),  the  effects  of  other 
means  of  publicity  which  may  be  operating  at  the 
same  time,  changes  in  styles,  wants,  and  general 
prosperity  on  the  part  of  consumers.  Conditions 
are  not  under  control  and  even  inferior  methods 
may  occasionally  be  more  remunerative,  for  the 
time  being,  than  a  more  cautious  attempt  to  se- 
cure the  uniform  conditions  of  trade,  circulation, 
competition,  etc.,  which  would  be  required  for  a 
careful  experimental  measurement. 

The  second  difficulty  is  that  such  methods  are 
costly.  All  the  measurements  take  place  after 
the  appeal  has  been  presented,  and  expenses  must 
be  met  regardless  of  the  success  or  failure  of  the 
appeal.  Cooperation  might  afford  relief  at  this 
point  were  it  not  for  two  facts.  The  results  of 
one  campaign  involving  one  commodity,  one  clien- 
tele, one  set  of  executive  and  distributive  opera- 
tions, cannot  be  carried  over  bodily  to  another 
business  venture  in  which  all  or  several  of  these 
factors  are  changed.     Further,  business  is  com- 

3 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

petitive,    and    successful   methods    are    not   pro- 
claimed and  communicated  to  all  comers. 

We  must  devise,  then,  not  only  a  method  of 
measurement,  but  a  method  which  will  permit  of 
measurement  beforehand,  and  which  will  be  so 
flexible  as  to  permit  adaptation  to  widely  variant 
circumstances.  And  since  we  are  dealing  with 
such  subjective  things  as  interest,  feelings,  per- 
suasions, attention,  choice,  motive,  action,  belief, 
we  cannot  employ  any  objective  scale  such  as  the 
yard  stick,  the  balance,  the  clock  work,  or  ther- 
mometer. But  we  need  not  despair.  In  the  psy- 
chological laboratory  we  find  students  measuring 
the  intensity  of  sensations,  the  degree  of  atten- 
tion, the  strength  of  belief,  the  legibility  of  hand- 
writing, the  agreeableness  of  color  combinations, 
the  excellence  of  literary  compositions,  the  emi- 
nence of  scientific  men,  the  humor  of  comic  situ- 
ations, and  many  other  things  which  are  no  less 
subjective  than  the  persuasiveness  of  a  selling 
talk  or  the  pulling  power  of  an  advertisement. 
It  was  in  such  a  laboratory  that  the  first  success- 
ful attempt  was  made  to  measure  beforehand  the 
relative  strength  of  such  appeals  as  are  com- 
monly employed  in  business.  In  the  following 
portions  of  this  chapter  descriptions  will  be  given 
of  some  of  these  measurements,  which  were  made 

4 


MEASURING    STRENGTH    OF    AN    APPEAL 

in  my  own  laboratory,  either  by  myself  or  by  my 
students  and  fellow  workers.  In  later  chapters 
the  various  methods  employed  will  be  presented, 
and  I  shall  further  show  how  the  application  of 
such  laboratory  methods  enables  us  not  only  to 
measure  the  strength  of  the  appeal  as  a  whole, 
but  also  to  analyze  it  into  its  various  elements. 
By  means  of  such  analysis  we  can  determine  the 
nature  of  these  elements,  the  ways  in  which  peo- 
ple of  various  ages  and  classes  react  to  them,  the 
deeper-lying  reasons  for  these  reactions,  and  can 
present  in  concrete  detail  the  processes  going  on 
in  the  mind  of  the  customer  engaged  in  a  busi- 
ness transaction. 

In  the  following  accounts  the  general  plan  will 
be: 

1.  To  secure  measurements,  by  laboratory 
methods,  of  the  probable  relative  values  of  vari- 
ous appeals.  In  doing  this  we  must  arrange  for 
controlled  conditions  by  restricting  the  appeals 
to  the  same  commodity  or  type  of  article,  and 
by  keeping  uniform,  for  the  time  being,  such 
items  as  size,  legibility,  familiarity,  etc.  These 
factors  will  later  be  discussed,  each  in  its  proper 
place. 

2.  Having  measured  the  appeals  in  the  labo- 
ratory, we  shall  secure  the  actual  returns  or  re- 


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PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

suits  which  the  appeals  produced.  Partly  for  this 
reason  printed  advertisements  are  chosen  as  ma- 
terial rather  than  letters,  personal  interviews,  or 
the  commodities  themselves.  The  results  will, 
however,  apply  as  well  to  the  various  sorts  of 
appeal  already  enumerated  in  so  far  as  they  have 
elements  in  common  with  the  advertisement. 

3.  We  shall  then  compare  the  laboratory  meas- 
urements with  the  actual  returns  provided  by  the 
business  concerns  using  the  advertisements,  in 
order  to  see  in  how  far  the  actual  results  after 
circulation  agree  with  the  laboratory  results 
which  could  have  been  determined  beforehand. 
In  no  case  were  the  actual  results  revealed  until 
the  laboratory  measurements  had  been  already 
made  and  announced. 

MACHINERY     ADVERTISEMENTS 

The  first  series  studied  was  a  set  of  machinery 
advertisements  shown  in  the  illustrations  on  pp. 
6  and  7.  There  are  five  appeals,  of  uniform  size, 
each  constituting  an  attempt  to  influence  buyers 
or  inquirers  in  favor  of  the  same  commodity.  The 
following  table  shows  the  results  of  the  labora- 
tory test,  the  ten  persons  experimented  on  being 
seniors  in  an  engineering  school,  thus  represent- 

8 


MEASURING  STRENGTH  OF  AN  APPEAL 

ing  the  general  class  of  people  to  whom  such  ap- 
peals would  be  directed  in  the  natural  course  of 
business.  If  a  given  appeal  was  found  to  be  the 
strongest  for  a  given  individual,  it  was  marked  1 
for  him.  If  it  was  found  to  be  the  least  persua- 
sive, it  was  marked  5,  and  the  intermediate  posi- 
tions  indicate  corresponding  places  in  the  order 
of  strength.  In  the  final  column  of  the  table  is 
given  the  actual  order  of  merit  of  these  five  ad- 
vertisements, determined  by  the  number  of  in- 
quiries which  followed  upon  each  when  run  in  the 
same  medium.  It  is  not  necessary  at  this  point 
to  discuss  two  factors  which  will  at  once  occur 
to  the  mind  of  everv  business  man:  the  "cumu- 
lative  effect"  of  successive  appeals,  and  the  "law 
of  diminishing  returns"  which  may  operate  when 
a  series  of  appeals  is  presented  to  the  same  body 
of  readers.    These  factors  will  be  treated  in  their 


TABLE   I 

Appeal 

Ten  different  persons 
tested 

Average 

Order  of 

Superiority 

by  test 

Order  of 

Superiority 

by  actual 

returns 

A 
B 
C 
D 
E 

4323234441 
5  5  14  5  11112 
113  14  2  2  2  3  4 
2455355555 
3242143323 

3.0 
2.6 
2.3 
4.4 

2.7 

4 
2 
1 
5 
3 

4 
2 
1 
5 
3 

9 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

proper  places.  They  do  not  influence  the  signifi- 
cance of  the  returns  in  the  case  now  under  con- 
sideration. 

If  now  the  relative  values  of  these  appeals,  as 
judged  by  actual  inquiries  produced,  be  compared 
with  the  order  as  determined  by  laboratory  tests, 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  two  orders  agree  perfectly. 
The  tests  showed  C  to  be  the  strongest  and  D  to 
be  the  weakest,  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  C  pulled 
forty  times  as  many  inquiries  as  did  D,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  that  the  cost  of  running  and  preparing 
D  was  six  times  as  great  as  for  C.  The  other 
appeals  range  between  these  two  extremes.  The 
testing  of  this  series  in  the  laboratory  before 
their  appearance  would  have  resulted  in  the  elim- 
ination of  the  weaker  appeals,  and  consequently 
in  increase  of  returns  and  diminution  in  the 
cost  of  publicity.  The  reasons  for  the  striking 
differences  in  the  strength  of  these  five  appeals 
will  be  made  clear  in  subsequent  chapters.  Analy- 
sis leads  to  the  discovery  of  differences  and  of 
principles  which  are  true  not  only  for  the  appeals 
in  this  series  but  for  appeals  in  general.  The 
point  to  be  made  now  is  that  the  laboratory  test 
is  a  genuine  and  reliable  measure  of  the  pulling 
power  of  the  different  advertisements. 

10 


MEASURING  STRENGTH  OF  AN  APPEAL 


SOAP     ADVERTISEMENTS 

A  second  case  of  close  agreement  is  shown  in 
Table  II.  The  series  of  appeals  consisted  of 
eight  advertisements.  Two  laboratory  tests  were 
made,  one  on  25  people,  and  the  other  on  a  differ- 
ent group  of  100  people.  The  advertisements  are 
shown  on  pp.  12  and  13.  The  first  column  in  the 
table  gives  the  letters  used  to  identify  the  adver- 
tisements. The  second  column  shows  the  relative 
persuasiveness  of  the  appeals  as  determined  by 
the  first  experiment,  the  third  column  as  deter- 
mined by  the  second  experiment.    These  two  tests 


TABLE    II 


Result  of 

Result  of 

As  judged 

As  judged 

Appeal 

First 

Second 

by 

by 

Experiment 

Experiment 

Pack'rMf.Co. 

Advt.  Agency 

A 

1 

2 

4 

2 

B 

2 

1 

1 

3 

C 

3 

3 

2 

1 

D 

4 

4 

3 

4 

E 

O 

5 

5 

5 

F 

6 

6 

6 

6 

G 

7 

7 

7 

7 

H 

8 

8 

8 

8 

agreed  perfectly  except  that  advertisement  A, 
which  stood  first  in  pulling  power  in  the  first  test, 
stood  second  in  the  second  test.  The  fourth  col- 
umn gives  the  relative  order  of  merit  of  the  ap- 

11 


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.... 


.  tvvi  t^_*_  v.  <.  kj <_v^  t.  iti 


sr?.J 


B 


PACKER'S  TAR  SOAP 


not  onfy  cleanses  the  hair,  but 
tmp;irt>.  vigor  t"  rhc  whole  scalp. 
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into  the  ...  tip  with  gentle  and  ,.  .*. 
imucd  manipulation  softens  and 
removes  .ill  dandrutl  and  seborrheal 
st-.i't-s.  Irs  antiseptic  and  t<»nic 
acttoo  imparts  rigor  to  the  "lant'lu- 
l.ir  stnururcv  which  nourish  and 
enliven  the  hair,  thus  stimulating  n^ 
growth  and  maintaining  its  vjtalttv. 

■ 
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PACKER'S  TAR  SOAP 


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FORE    AS    THE    PINGS 


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13 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

peals,  as  judged  by  the  manufacturing  company 
concerned,  on  the  basis  of  twenty  years'  experi- 
ence. The  final  column  gives  the  order  as  judged 
by  three  experts  of  the  advertising  agency  which 
had  charge  of  this  firm's  publicity  campaigns. 
Each  of  these  various  orders  was  determined  in- 
dependently, and  without  knowledge  of  the  results 
of  the  other  orders.  The  agreement  is  almost  as 
striking  as  it  was  in  the  case  of  the  machinery 
appeals.  A  change  in  the  grading  of  just  one 
advertisement  in  each  of  the  last  three  columns 
will  make  all  four  columns  agree.  It  is  apparent 
that  a  preliminary  laboratory  measurement  af- 
fords real  knowledge  of  the  strength  of  such  ap- 
peals. 

ELECTRIC    LIGHT    ADVERTISEMENTS 

A  third  example  must  suffice  by  way  of  merely 
illustrating  the  reliability  of  the  laboratory  meas- 
urement. Table  III  shows  five  electric  light  ad- 
vertisements as  measured  first  by  laboratory  test 
and  second  by  the  cost  per  inquiry  produced.  Ap- 
peals A  and  B  are  the  best  two  by  both  measure- 
ments. On  appeals  C  and  D  the  two  measure- 
ments agree  within  one  place  in  the  series.  Only 
on  E  is  there  any  considerable  discrepancy. 

14 


MEASURING    STRENGTH    OF    AN    APPEAL 


TABLE    III 


Appeal 

Order  as  measured 

by 

cost  per  inquiry 

Order  as  measured 

by 

laboratory  test 

A 

1 
2 
3 
4 
5 

2 

B 

1 

C 

D 

4 
5 

E 

3 

Many  significant  things  are  revealed  in  these 
experiments  which  enable  us  to  formulate  general 
laws  as  well  as  to  test  the  value  of  the  specific 
appeals.  By  way  of  illustration,  it  must  suffice 
for  the  present  to  call  attention  to  appeal  B  in 
the  first  experiment,  that  with  the  machinery  ad- 
vertisements. Notice  that  in  Table  I,  where  the 
measurements  of  each  of  the  ten  people  are  re- 
corded, B  stands  either  at  the  top  or  at  the  bot- 
tom of  the  series  of  Hve  appeals — never  in  the 
middle.  Except  for  two  people  this  appeal  stands 
either  first  or  last,  and  these  two  exceptions  are 
not  real  differences,  for  even  here  the  positions 
are  2  and  4.  This  means  that  there  are  two  types 
of  people  in  the  group  studied.  For  one  type  ap- 
peal B  is  very  effective,  and  these  are,  be  it  noted, 
the  very  people  for  whom  appeal  D  is  very  weak. 
For  the  other  group,  for  whom  appeal  B  is  weak, 
D  is  fairly  strong.    Each  of  these  appeals  B  and 

15 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

D,  then,  influences  only  one-half  of  the  group  of 
people.  To  secure  a  more  universal  appeal  it 
would  be  necessary  either  to  run  both  advertise- 
ments, thus  doubling  the  cost  of  returns,  or  to 
construct  a  third  type  of  appeal  which  should 
combine  the  virtues  of  B  and  D.  Appeal  C  is  as 
close  an  approximation  to  this  ideal  appeal  as 
the  series  affords.  Note  that  it  stands  fairly  high 
for  both  types  of  people.  Only  in  two  cases  does 
it  stand  below  the  middle  of  the  series.  These 
differences  are  not  accidental  nor  peculiar  to  this 
series  of  appeals.  They  are  found  in  many  series 
and  with  every  group  of  people  I  have  had  occa- 
sion to  study.  Explanation  of  these  facts  will  be 
given  in  due  time. 


CHAPTEE  II 

THE  NEBVOUS  BASIS  OF  MENTAL  PBOCESSES 

Every  mental  process,  even  that  of  being  im- 
pressed or  repelled  by  an  advertisement  or  a 
salesman,  lias  a  nervous  basis.  We  have  many 
proofs  of  this  dependence  of  consciousness  npon 
the  nervous  system.  Thus  injuries  to  the  ner- 
vous system  affect  our  consciousness,  as  do  drugs 
which  act  temporarily  upon  the  nerve  tissue. 
Many  forms  of  mental  disease  are  caused  by  de- 
structive processes  in  the  nervous  system.  Ex- 
perimental physiology  finds  that  certain  areas 
in  the  brain  are  control  centers  for  certain  sets 
of  movements  and  of  higher  sensory  and  mental 
processes  such  as  seeing,  hearing,  understanding 
the  meaning  of  words,  associating  ideas,  etc.  All 
of  our  knowledge  depends  on  the  possession  of 
sense  organs — eye,  ear,  etc.,  and  these  sense  or- 
gans are  only  special  modifications  of  parts  of 
the  nervous  system.  Finally,  comparative  anat- 
omy shows  us  that  in  the  animal  series,  from  low- 
est to  highest  forms,  increase  in  the  complexity 

17 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

of  consciousness  is  always  accompanied  by  in- 
creased complexity  of  the  nervous  system. 

Consequently,  any  study  of  mental  processes 
should  take  account,  also,  of  the  underlying  ner- 
vous processes.  Such  an  account  not  only  aids 
greatly  in  the  explanation  of  the  mental  proces- 
ses, but  also  serves  as  a  scheme  or  diagram  which 
is  useful  in  systematizing  and  remembering  the 
mental  processes  themselves,  their  laws,  and  their 
relations  to  each  other. 

Considered  from  this  point  of  view  a  man  is 
simply  a  nervous  mechanism,  which  is  capable, 
on  the  one  hand,  of  being  sensitive  to  objects  and 
events  in  the  outside  world,  and,  on  the  other 
hand,  of  responding  to  these  impressions  by  the 
various  sorts  of  movements  which  make  up  his 
reactions,  his  behavior.  Sensation  on  the  one 
hand  and  movement  on  the  other,  sum  up  his  life. 
When  the  sense  impression  is  very  simple — a 
sound,  or  a  flash  of  light — we  call  it  a  stimulus; 
when  it  is  more  complex — an  invitation,  a  prob- 
lem, a  strange  object,  an  argument  or  an  adver- 
tisement— we  call  it  an  appeal.  When  the  reac- 
tion is  very  simple  we  call  it  a  movement;  when 
it  is  more  complicated,  and  perhaps  involves  many 
movements,  we  call  it  a  response. 

All  mental  life,  then,  can  be  analyzed  into  the 

18 


NERVOUS    BASIS    OF    MENTAL    PROCESSES 

two  simple  elements  of  appeal  and  response.  A 
motorman  suddenly  sees  a  danger  signal  and 
stops  his  car.  The  red  light  is  the  appeal,  and 
his  movement  in  applying  the  brakes  is  the  re- 
sponse. We  try  to  teach  a  child  to  talk.  The  ob- 
ject we  point  to  is  the  appeal,  his  speech  move- 
ments are  his  response.  Even  the  little  polite- 
nesses and  civilities  of  social  life,  the  conven- 
tionalities of  the  street,  the  seashore,  the  banquet 
table,  are  solely  a  matter  of  this  or  that  response 
to  this  or  that  situation.  What  distinguishes  the 
insane  man  from  the  rest  of  us  is  the  fact  that 
he  responds  wrongly  or  irregularly  to  the  stimuli 
and  appeals  of  the  world  in  which  he  is  placed. 
In  salesmanship  the  situation  is  quite  the  same. 
Given  a  certain  salesman,  a  certain  article,  a  cer- 
tain set  of  advantages  or  arguments,  this  consti- 
tutes the  appeal.  The  important  factor  remain- 
ing is  the  way  in  which  the  customer  will  respond 
to  the  given  appeal.  The  operation  of  an  adver- 
tisement, be  it  good  or  bad,  is  precisely  the  same 
process.  The  appeal  here  usually  comes  through 
the  sense  of  sight;  it  consists,  let  us  suppose,  of 
a  poster  of  definite  size,  position,  color  and  com- 
position, and  it  advances  certain  selling  points 
for  the  article  it  desires  to  announce.  Here  is  the 
sensory  side,  the  stimulus.     Now  how  does  the 

19 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

passerby  react  to  the  appeal?  It  may  "catch  his 
eye,"  he  may  read  it  through,  and,  either  now  or 
on  a  later  occasion,  buy  the  article.  Or  he  may 
behave  quite  differently.  The  appeal  may  never 
come  into  his  consciousness,  in  which  case  the 
poster  is  passed  unnoticed.  Or  he  may  observe 
it,  remark,  "What  a  glaring,  unsightly  blotch  of 
color!"  and  pass  by  on  the  other  side.  No  mat- 
ter which  of  these  things  he  does,  it  constitutes 
his  response — a  response  made  up  of  movement 
and  general  behavior. 

A  pertinent  question  now  is :  What  is  the  ner- 
vous mechanism  of  such  a  process;  what  hap- 
pens in  the  nervous  system  when  a  man  responds 
to  a  stimulus!  Here,  then,  we  must  get  some 
knowledge  of  the  nervous  elements,  and  some  in- 
sight into  the  way  in  which  these  elements  com- 
bine to  form  the  complex  nervous  system. 

The  simplest  nervous  mechanism  that  can  un- 
derlie a  process  of  appeal  and  response  is  a  com- 
bination of  two  nerve  cells.  These  cells  are  mi- 
nute structures  with  a  main  body  and  two  sets 
of  branches.  The  cells  are  situated  for  the  most 
part  in  the  brain  and  in  or  alongside  the  spinal 
cord.  There  are,  in  the  main,  two  kinds  of  nerve 
cells,  sensory  cells  and  motor  cells.  The  sensory 
cell  sends  one  long  branch  out  to  the  surface  of 

20 


NERVOUS    BASIS    OF    MENTAL    PROCESSES 

the  body  to  some  sense  organ,  as  the  eye,  ear, 
finger  tips,  etc.  The  other  branches  of  this  cell 
are  short,  and  run  chiefly  toward  motor  cells 
which  lie  at  a  greater  or  less  distance  from  it  in 
the  brain  or  cord.  These  short  branches  are  met 
by  the  short  processes  coming  from  the  motor 
cell,  which  in  turn  sends  its  long  fiber  out  to  a 
muscle,  in  some  more  or  less  remote  part  of  the 
body. 

This  arrangement  constitutes  what  is  known  as 
a  "reflex  arc,"  because  nervous  impulses  pass 
along  it  much  as  do  electrical  currents  along  a 
circuit.  Nervous  energy  set  up  by  the  outside 
stimulus  passes  along  the  sensory  fiber  to  the  cen- 
ter, where  it  is  transmitted  to  the  motor  cell  and 
passed  on  out  to  the  muscle,  reinforced,  perhaps, 
by  energy  from  other  cells  that  are  acting  at  the 
same  time.  The  result  is  a  movement  of  the  mus- 
cle. The  response  is  caused  directly,  we  may  even 
say  mechanically,  by  the  energy  generated  by  the 
stimulus.  So  the  nervous  element  falls  into  two 
sections,  a  sensory  end  which  is  the  basis  of  ap- 
peal, and  a  motor  end  which  is  the  basis  of  re- 
sponse. 

These  pure  reflexes  are  not  usually  accom- 
panied by  consciousness.  The  impulse  simply 
passes  into  the  spinal  cord  and  out.     Examples 

21 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

of  such  reflexes  are  blinking  the  eye  when  struck 
at,  sneezing,  coughing,  the  heart  beat,  etc. 

But  this  simple  arc  represents  the  lowest  level 
of  nervous  activity,  that  controlled  by  spinal  cen- 
ters. In  the  human  being  we  may  point  out  two 
higher  and  more  complicated  levels,  which  involve 
in  the  one  case  the  higher  brain,  or  cerebrum,  and 
in  the  other  the  lower  brain  area,  the  cerebellum, 
medulla,  etc. 

Thus  some  appeals  do  not  lead  to  an  immediate 
and  reflex  response,  but  require  deliberation,  com- 
parison and  choice.  These  higher  thought  proc- 
esses, processes  of  reasoning,  argument,  and  de- 
cision, depend  on  the  activity  of  nervous  centers 
in  the  cerebrum.  The  sensory  impulse,  instead  of 
issuing  from  the  cord  at  once,  in  the  form  of  a 
motor  impulse,  passes  over  a  more  devious  path. 
It  runs  up  along  the  cord  to  the  higher  brain  cen- 
ters and  sets  up  activity  through  processes  which, 
on  the  side  of  consciousness,  appear  as  memories, 
associations,  trains  of  thought,  judgments.  Only 
after  these  processes  have  been  brought  to  bear 
on  the  appeal,  when  the  past  experience,  conscious 
knowledge,  interests,  purposes,  and  ideals  have 
determined  what  sort  of  response  should  most 
profitably  follow — only  then  does  the  reaction 
come.    What  the  response  will  be,  or  when  it  will 

22 


NERVOUS    BASIS    OF    MENTAL    PROCESSES 

coroe,  can  not  be  predicted  from  the  outside,  as 
was  the  case  with  the  simple  reflexes.  The  re- 
sponse may  be  delayed,  its  character  is  uncertain, 
and  it  may  be  quite  out  of  proportion  to  the  phys- 
ical strength  of  the  stimulus. 


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A  Long  Circuit  Appeal 

Such  a  process  of  appeal  and  response  operates, 
we  may  say,  by  means  of  the  higher  level.  It  in- 
volves what  we  may  call  in  the  psychology  of  ad- 
vertising and  salesmanship  the  long  circuit.     It 

23 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

is  apparent  at  once  that  it  corresponds  to  a  well- 
known  type  of  selling  talk,  the  reason  ivhy  copy 
which  invites  and  presents  careful  comparisons 
and  weighing  of  advantages  and  disadvantages, 
copy  which  consists  of  the  candid  exposition  of 
selling  points. 

But  there  are  objects  in  our  experience  which, 
although  they  do  not  provoke  an  immediate  re- 
flex response,  are,  nevertheless,  reacted  to  much 
more  quickly,  uniformly,  and  strongly  than  those 
which  operate  over  the  long  circuit.  Thus,  in 
looking  over  a  book  catalogue  xhere  are  certain 
titles  which  immediately  catch  my  attention  and 
lead  me  to  examine  them  closely.  Other  titles  I 
may  seem  not  to  see.  If  I  am  but  walking  on  a 
fine  afternoon  and  see  a  baseball  game  in  pro- 
gress in  a  nearby  field,  I  find  myself  stopping  to 
watch  it,  quite  as  a  matter  of  cdurse  and  with  no 
preliminary  deliberation.  If  I  anl  passing  through 
a  lonesome  part  of  the  city  on  a  dark  night  and 
see  a  stealthy  form  slink  behind  a  tree  ahead  of 
me,  I  instinctively  reach  toward  my  hip  pocket  or 
tighten  my  grip  on  my  walking  stick.  So  when 
the  mother  sees  an  advertisement  that  offers  an 
article  guaranteed  to  promote  baby's  comfort,  or 
when  an  ambitious  man  sees  a  device  described 
that  will  certainly  economize  his  time  or  other- 

24 


NERVOUS    BASIS    OF    MENTAL    PROCESSES 

wise  increase  his  efficiency,  he  finds  that,  quite 
in  an  unpremeditated  way,  he  has  left  off  doing 
other  things  and  is  reading  through  the  announce- 
ment or  description.  All  of  these  responses, 
while  perhaps  not  immediate,  are,  nevertheless, 
quick ;  they  are  strong,  and  we  can  be  reasonably 


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r  tu  succ&d  as 
others— costs  i 
r..r.noob!i!?atioa. 

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.ineaaliXPERT 
l— in  your'  sfpare 
mutter"  where  vmj 


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IfJIFRfcATlOSHt  CUWKES?C»0£ltCfi  StMOOLS, 

r^^g^£LZ 

rjtmfe)it»i  "T' 

Cte? — . _                 '-'- —J. 

A  Short  Circuit  Appeal 


certain  in  advance  what  their  character  will  be. 
We  will  find  that  in  such  cases  the  object  has  ap- 
pealed to  some  universal  instinct,  interest  or  de- 

25 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

sire,  or  has  awakened  some  strong  feeling.  Such 
appeals  call  into  action  centers  which  are  prompt, 
powerful  and  definite  in  their  response.  Such  a 
process,  then,  involves  what  we  may  call  the  short 
circuit.  Such  an  appeal  obviously,  in  turn,  cor- 
responds to  a  distinct  kind  of  argument,  the  dis- 
play advertisement  or  the  emotional  selling  talk 
which  does  not  argue  but  simply  attempts  to  work 
on  strong  feeling,  instinct  or  ideal.  The  range 
of  such  special  appeals  is  exceedingly  wide,  for 
there  are  many  objects  in  our  experience  toward 
which  we  all  react  by  this  feeling  circuit,  without 
stopping  to  ask  why  we  so  respond.  Our  reaction 
is  determined  beforehand,  for  the  most  part  by 
the  history  of  the  race  in  dealing  with  these  ob- 
jects. 

Generally  speaking,  it  is  true  that  the  long  cir- 
cuit is  determined  chiefly  by  the  past  experience 
of  the  individual,  the  short  circuit  by  the  history 
of  the  race.  All  of  us  behave  in  both  ways.  The 
particular  way  in  which  we  respond  on  a  given 
occasion  will  depend  on  the  character  of  the  ap- 
peal, the  commodity  concerned,  the  type  of  the 
person,  his  age,  sex,  present  activity,  and  a  great 
number  of  other  individual  differences  which  it  is 
the  business  of  psychology  to  study,  classify  and 
explain. 

26 


NERVOUS    BASIS    OF    MENTAL    PROCESSES 

The  practical  value  of  a  study  of  human  nature 
comes  to  depend  on  the  fact  that  there  are  some 
universals,  some  ways  in  which  all  people  are 
alike.  When  no  such  universal  traits  are  found, 
there  will  be  either  types  or  classes,  the  members 
of  which  resemble  each  other,  or  the  members  of 
the  race  will  be  distributed  according  to  a  more 
or  less  bilaterally  symmetrical  curve,  with  the 
greatest  number  of  individuals  arranged  about 
the  average  or  central  type,  while  others  depart 
from  this  type  both  above  and  below,  the  num- 
ber of  people  for  a  given  character  becoming  less 
the  further  that  character  is  from  the  type. 

Here,  then,  is  a  concrete  problem  in  salesman- 
ship and  advertising.  For  what  sort  of  com- 
modities and  with  what  sort  of  people  is  the  direct 
short  circuit  appeal  effective;  what  objects  and 
classes  of  objects  can  be  effectively  advertised 
and  sold  by  an  appeal  to  special  feelings  or  in- 
stincts? And  for  what  objects  will  the  long  cir- 
cuit be  employed,  the  reason  why  argument,  most 
effectively?  Some  answer  to  these  questions  we 
may  hope  to  get  as  we  continue,  answers  based 
partly  on  our  general  psychological  knowledge, 
partly  on  the  concrete  experience  of  practical  men 
and  partly  on  definite  experiments  now  being  per- 
formed in  the  laboratories. 

27 


CHAPTER    III 

ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 
THE  TASK 

We  may  analyze  the  task  of  an  argument  or 
an  advertisement  in  terms  of  the  reflex  arc,  for 
their  operation  is  the  same  as  the  operation  of 
any  other  stimulus.    The  process  is  always : 

1.  Stimulus  catches  attention,  comes  to  no- 
tice, separates  itself  from  other  impres- 
sions. 

2.  The  impression  either  (a)  at  once  drops 
out  of  consciousness,  or  (b)  holds  the  at- 
tention, i.e.,  becomes  dominant  in  con- 
sciousness and  causes  adjustment  of  the 
perceiving  organ  for  closer  examination. 

3.  In  so  doing  it  arouses  central  associations, 
memories,  interests,  feelings,  and  becomes 
firmly  attached  to  these ;  the  impression  is 
fixed,  and  remains  as  idea  or  image. 

4.  It  leads  to  motor  response.    This  response 

28 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

is  an  essential  factor  in  determining  the 
final  meaning  of  the  appeal.  Psycho- 
logically as  well  as  commercially,  the  re- 
sponse is  one  of  the  most  important  ele- 
ments in  the  whole  process. 

Always  bear  in  mind  that  a  sensory  impression 
or  revived  image  has  its  inevitable  motor  issue. 
This  will  be  an  important  principle  later  on.  We 
shall  onlv  mention  it  now.  And  remember  that 
this  response  does  much  to  determine  the  charac- 
ter of  the  perception.  Observe  this  process  when 
a  fly  lights  on  the  baby's  cheek,  or  when  we  run  a 
sliver  in  our  finger: 

1.  .We  say:  "Oh!  what's  that?  Oh!  it's  a 
sliver. ' ' 

2.  We  carefully  observe  the  sliver,  locate  it, 
observe  its  length,  depth,  etc. 

3.  By  the  short  circuit  we  respond  at  once  by 
instinctive  movements,  sucking,  grimacing, 
pressing,  etc. 

4.  By  the  long  circuit  we  compare,  remember, 
reflect,  and  either  secure  a  jackknife  or  go 
to  a  doctor. 

5.  We  remember  the  event  and  act  more 
quickly  next  time  by  virtue  of  this  mem- 

29 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

ory  and  response.     The  object  is  charac- 
terized by  the  response. 

An  advertisement  must  go  through  the  same 
process : 

1.  I  see  Ingersoll's  watch  advertisement  with 
the  many  hands.  I  say:  "Hello,  what's 
that?" 

2.  I  examine  it,  read  it  through  with  care. 

3.  But  now  comes  the  apparent  difference  be- 
tween the  advertisement  and  the  ordinary 
stimulus.  With  the  ordinary  stimulus  the 
response,  we  may  think,  is  immediate.  But 
it  is  not  always.  With  lower  forms  of  life 
this  is  true.  But  the  chief  difference  be- 
tween man  and  lower  forms  is  in  the  re- 
tarded reaction.  Even  the  response  to  a 
pin  prick  may  be  delayed  and  complicated. 
Such  delay  usually  characterizes  the  re- 
sponse to  an  advertisement,  and  this  con- 
stitutes one  of  the  two  chief  psychological 
differences  between  advertising  and  sales- 
manship. Hence  the  impression  must  be 
fixated  for  delayed  response,  must  be  re- 
membered, and  given,  in  memory,  prefer- 
ence over  other  advertisements  for  simi- 
lar commodities. 

30 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

4.  Finally  the  appeal  must  lead  to  specific 
response,  to  favorable  action  toward  the 
particular  article  or  brand  announced. 

This  analysis  gives  us  the  psychological  tasks 
of  an  appeal.  It  will  be  advantageous  to  preface 
our  study  of  these  four  tasks  with  a  brief  exami- 
nation of  the  pure  psychology  involved  in  these 
four  aspects  of  the  reflex  arc : 

1.  In  the  first  section  we  have  to  do  with  the 
psychology  of  attention  and  perception. 

2.  In  the  second  with  the  psychology  of  at- 
tention, interest,  and  feeling,  etc. 

3.  In  the  third  with  the  psychology  of 
memory,  association,  emotion,  mental 
imagery,  etc. 

4.  Lastly  with  volition,  habit,  instinct,  effec- 
tive conception,  imitation,  suggestion,  etc. 

Before  taking  up  the  investigation  of  these  four 
fundamental  sections,  we  may  with  profit  get  a 
general  view  of  advertisements  in  their  different 
forms,  see  what  the  general  psychological  char- 
acter of  each  type  is,  and  inquire  in  which  forms 
the  psychological  subtleties  play  a  role,  and  in 
which  they  do  not.  Let  us  first  examine  the  ap- 
peal with  respect  to  its  own  purpose  and  charac- 

31 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

ter,  and  then  with  respect  to  the  medium  in  which 
it  is  found,  for  media  as  well  as  individual  adver- 
tisements have  their  psychology. 

ANALYSIS    OF   ADVERTISING   TYPES 

With  respect  to  their  quality  and  purpose,  we 
may  distinguish  three  chief  types  of  advertise- 
ments. 

I.  The  Classified  Advertisement. — Here  the 
psychological  subtleties  play  their  feeblest  role. 


A  Splendid 
Opening  for  a 

Special 
Representative 


MT  There  are  several  sections  of 
^*-»  the  country  where  repre- 
sentation is  wanted.  A  leading 
publication  in  its  field.  A  liberal 
offer"  to  the  right  men.  If  you 
want  to  add  another  paper  to 
your  list  write 

Box  T.  P.  M., 

C.r.  ADVERTISING  &   S  614.  INC 
■i    Wmi   1*1  Mr«i.  s,.  York 


A  Classified  Appeal 


The  classified  advertisement  contains  a  simple  an- 
nouncement or  invitation,  intended  only  for  those 
who  are  a  priori  interested  in  it.    It  will  be  sought 

32 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

for  by  the  proper  person.  In  fact,  you  would 
rather  the  other  person  did  not  see  it.  His  cor- 
respondence would  only  annoy  you.  You  already 
have  attention  and  interest.  Yrou  need  not  seek 
for  mnemonic  qualities,  for  the  right  person  will 
surely  make  a  memorandum  of  the  matter.  You 
will  have  no  difficulty  in  provoking  response.  The 
right  person  will  respond  without  further  incen- 
tive. The  only  psychology  involved  here  is  the 
psychology  of  intelligibility.    We  must  observe : 

1.  The  psychology  of  expression — of  clear, 
accurate  and  succinct  statement — and  this 
chiefly  as  a  means  of  eliminating  the 
wrong  correspondent. 

2.  The  ordinary  psychology  of  typography — 
the  laws  of  reading,  spacing,  position, 
cataloging,  color,  legibility  of  type,  etc. 

3.  The  knowledge  of  media,  which  is  not  so 
much  a  matter  of  a  priori  psychology  as  a 
matter  of  advertising  technology  and  sta- 
tistics. This  is  a  separate  field  in  the  sci- 
ence of  business  in  which  there  is  yet  much 
to  be  done. 

II.  The  Publicity  Advertisement. — This  type 
is  not,  strictly  speaking,  an  advertisement  at  all, 
i.e.,  it  does  not  pretend  to  operate  successively  on 

33 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 


NATIONAL 
BISCUIT  COMPANY 
GRAHAM  CRACKERS 


—  10  4  — 

A  PACKAGE 


Publicity  Appeal 


Publicity  Appeal 

34 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

the  complete  arc.  It  is  a  public  reminder,  in- 
tended to  reinforce  informative  appeals  already 
issued  or  about  to  come.  It  usually  seeks  merely 
to  familiarize  a  name  or  trade  mark  already 
known,  or  excite  curiosity  concerning  a  com- 
modity about  to  be  announced. 

(1)  Its  psychology  is  usually  mechanical — 
utilizing  the  principles  of  size  and  con- 
trast. 

(2)  Its  mnemonic  psychology  is  also  me- 
chanical, utilizing  chiefly  the  principle  of 
repetition. 

(3)  But  it  also  involves  the  psychology  of 
names,  that  of  trade  marks  and  that  of 
the  memorability  of  different  kinds  of 
facts. 

III.  Display  Advertisements. — In  display  ad- 
vertisements the  role  of  psychological  factors  is 
most  prominent.  The  display  advertisement  ex- 
plicitly takes  the  place  of  the  salesman;  it  is  a 
direct  appeal,  and  is  calculated  to  provoke  a  more 
or  less  direct,  and  more  or  less  immediate  re- 
sponse. According  to  its  kind,  it  may  work 
through  the  rational  circuit  or  the  feeling  circuit. 
All  parts  of  the  arc  are  thus  involved.  It  is  con- 
sequently on  this  type  of  advertisement  that  we 

35 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

will  base  most  of  our  analysis,  chiefly  because  of 
its  ideal  character.     But  all  that  is  said  of  this 


Wp^llZJi^-^^ 


38& 


C  O  M  P  L  K  T  E 
ILLUSTRATED 
C,  A  T  A  L  O  O 

and  suggestions  on 
Filing"  and  .  Kioditrg 
Papers,  in  just.iflich 
offices  as  your  ewn, 
mailed  frte.'  Addict 
Dept.  MSlO     •    • 


;  The  unitprmciplc  of  construc- 
tion in  ftlingcabineKis  Jitst  as  applicable 

jn  the  small  office*  as  in^thelar.^e  ones. 

.  -•  Indeed,  there  ts  even  more  necessity  for  (he  ' 
practice  of'econoniy.and'usiiii.'tothe  best  possible 
Tidranra»c  •  the  (spaced available    in    hlini;    those 
Itirpnrtant  records,  papers,, and  letters  on  which 
<h<udevehvpmeiit  of  a  business  depends.       .  v_  •     ••' , 

■*"      .     •  Standardizes       ; 

Filing  ^Equipment    V 

while  favored  by  fargejx>r|)orations  Because,  of  the 
unlimited  scope  in  the  .variety  of  its  tiling  devices 
"'  (made  in  both  Wood  and  Steel)  Is  just  as  popular  '. 
'in  the  small  office- Because  the  "same  appliances 
caiv-ie  procured  m  re4uce.d  size  sections  which 
hlirrrmuize  in.  every  -detail  with  correct  ideas  of 
modern  office  equiumejitv"  -  V' .  '  - 

v         ,'.■/.'.:.'  utifi'-m  fried  bt  ik.tr  1500'atvr,  itt-tre  ml 
^^    rrpreigttfett,  lit  ibtp  Qil~fi}>p-rtk:mt,  J*e:ght  frefniJ. 

*.  Cincinnati 


CbiCUo.   2J1-211   -"w-   \V^U»Jt  Air.         y. iwtuftjui.  lH-lt^hu-jnO  .\»».-.hJvi 


Uffi  1 


1 

UJji 


Display  Appeal 


type  will  be  seen  to  apply  in  greater  or  less 
degree  to  the  two  other  types,  and  to  all  forms  of 
business  appeal  which  have  elements  in  common 
with  advertisements. 

36 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 


Papers  Born  of  Necessity 


EVERY  "Eagle  A"  Water-marked  Bond  Paper  is  a  paper  with  a 
reason — each  was  born  cf  necessity — the  necessity  of  having  a  paper 
which  in  quality,  color  and  finish  would  best  adapt  itself  tio  the  needs 
of  each  individual  user. 


There  is  an  "Eagle  A"  Bond  Paper  for  the  man  who 

wants  one  million  circulars  and  who  figures  the  cost 
first;  as  well  as  a  paper  of  distinctive  character  and  ex- 
clusiveness,  for  the  man  who  orders  one  thousand  letter 
heads  and  who  considers  quality  first  and  cost  last 

*'  Eagle  A"  Bond  Papers  are  not  of  one  grade.  They're 
of  thirty-four  grades.  They  are  not  for  one  use.  They 
are  for  every  use.  But  they  are  all  of  100%  value, 
whether  it  be  a  paper  on  which  to  address  a  bank  presi- 
dent, or  to  write  a  memorandum  to  the  office-boy. 

To  make  each  one  of  the  34  Bond  Papers  a  Quality-plus 
Paper — to  give  to  each  a  distinctive  character  and  qual- 
ity, color  and  finish— to  Trade-mark  the  whole  with  the 
Water-mark  of  the  "Eagle  A" — and  to  place  them" 
within  the  reach  of  every  paper-user,  is  a  condition 
made  possible  only  by  twenty-nine  mills,  each  making 
papers  of  necessity,  but  all  united  for  the  economic 
production  and    marketing   of   each   particular    grade. 

Look  for  the  "EagU  A"  Wattr-mark    It's  a  good  habit 

Ywr  Printer  or  Lilhorxspber  handlei  "Eagle  A"  Bond  t *- 
pur.  Ask  him  to  show  job  samples.  May  we  «q« geit  u 
'  Xajle  A"  Paper  tiat  voold  be  best  sdspl *d  to  roar  Deeds? 

AMERICAN    WRITING    PAPER   COMPANY 
5  Main  Street  09  moj*)  Ho] yoke,  Mass. 


There  ore    always    thing*,     the 

, quality  end  elegance  of  which 
place*  them  above  the  ivcr«ec — 
oXit  of  the  ordinary,  and  the  use  of 
which  lend*  prestige  and  added 
influence. 

There  are  always  people  desirous 
of  associating  themselves  with 
these  thloes — ihe  bent  of  every 
thing ;  appreciative  people  to 
whom  quality  In  all  thing*  is 
pvwfflouoi.     To  such 


iFac-SimtU  Wattr-mari) 
The  De  Lame   Boaiaeas  Paper 

makes  *  strong  appeal  by  It*  tone 
of  character  and  refinement.  It* 
supreme  qual  it  y  and  individuality. 
COUPON  BOND  Is  the  consum- 
mate "Eagle  A"  Bond  Paper  made 
for  those  desiring  the  maximum 
of  quality  lo  business  correspond- 
ence paper. 

May  we  send  you  the  portfolio  of 
COUPON  BOND  specimen  busi- 
ness forms?  It  will  demonstrate 
bow  COUPON  BOND  may  best 
serve  your  need 


Display  Appeal 


MEDIA 

With  respect  to  media,  we  may  briefly  sum- 
marize the  chief  psychological  characteristics,  if 
only  for  the  sake  of  having  them  stated.  Every 
business  man  knows  the  points  in  a  more  or  less 
defined  way,  and,  indeed,  with  much  more  cer- 
tainty than  I  do.  But  you  will  always  find 
knowledge    clarified    by    an    attempt    at    expres- 

37 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

sion.     Expression  discloses  fallacies,   shows  up 
vague  spots,  and  crystallizes  truth. 

We  may  roughly  distinguish  eight  classes  of 
media.  The  list  is  not  complete  in  this  day  of 
multitudinous  publicity  devices,  but  the  classes 
may  roughly  cover  the  field.  Briefly,  these  classes 
are  as  follows,  classified  according  to  psychologi- 
cal character  and  situation: 

I.  Newspapers,  Magazines,  Periodicals,  Trade 
Journals. — Here  the  appeal  is  more  or  less  inci- 
dental to  other  matter  contained  in  the  medium. 
Everybody  reads,  and  while  reading  may  happen 
upon  the  advertisement.  But  the  essential  part 
of  the  medium  is  the  other  content.  Generally 
speaking,  if  the  appeal  is  to  compete  with  this 
matter,  it  must  vie  with  it  in  attractiveness  and 
interest. 

1.  Studies  (see  Scott)  of  2,000  newspaper 
readers  show  this  to  be  especially  true 
here.  One-half  of  these  Chicago  men, 
from  all  ranks,  read  two  papers  daily,  one- 
fourth  of  them  read  three,  while  10%  read 
as  many  as  four.  The  average  time  spent 
on  these  papers  daily  is  10-15  minutes, 
though  many  people  spend  as  much  as  two 

38 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

hours.     Only  4%,  indeed,  spent  less  than 
15  minutes,  while  25%  spent  more. 

That  news  is  the  chief  item  of  interest  in  papers 
is  also  indicated  by  Scott's  table  in  which  about 
70%  of  interest  goes  to  news,  and  only  one-half  of 
1%  explicitly  to  advertisements. 

Obviously  the  successful  newspaper  advertise- 
ment must  in  some  way  compete  with  news  inter- 
est. The  classified  advertisement  does  this  suc- 
cessfully, for  it  is  in  itself  an  item  of  news  to 
those  for  whom  it  is  intended.  This  type  of  ap- 
peal, then,  is  psychologically  adapted  for  newspa- 
per insertion. 

2.  The  display  advertisement  can,  then,  in- 
crease its  power  by  becoming  newsy.  This 
point  has  already  been  emphasized  by 
Kennedy  in  his  chapter  on  "  Advertising 
is  News."  This  idea,  again,  is  of  course 
the  basis  of  the  well-known  success  of  the 
Wanamaker  news  sheet  in  the  dailies.  The 
more  the  advertisement  resembles  news 
in  its  tone,  the  better  it  will  compete  in 
interest  with  other  news  items.  The  suc- 
cess of  this  competition  is  well  illustrated 
by  an  incident  which  I  quote  on  the  au- 
thority  of  Edwin   Balmer,   who   says   in 

39 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

"Science  of  Advertising":  "One  of  the 
Philadelphia  newspapers,  which  had  pub- 
lished Wanamaker's  advertisements  for 
years,  lost  20,000  circulation  when  the  ad- 
vertisement was  withdrawn,  and  regained 
it  again  when  the  department  store's  pat- 
ronage returned"  (p.  20).  It  does  not 
necessarily  follow  from  what  I  have  just 
said  that  newspaper  advertising  should 
imitate  the  form  and  style  of  news  para- 
graphs. This  would  be  too  much  like  the  old 
trick  advertisements  that  began  with  some 
startling  declaration  which  read  like  a 
news  item  but  wound  up  by  extolling 
Somebody's  Bitters  or  Corn  Salve.  Ad- 
vertising that  attracts  by  deception  is  psy- 
chologically vicious.  The  point  here  is 
simply  that  newspaper  advertisements 
should  be  informative  in  character,  that 
they  should  really  convey  interesting  news 
of  stock,  prices,  styles,  location,  changes, 
sales,  etc.  The  newspaper  is  thus  specially 
adapted  for  local  advertising. 
3.  The  value  of  magazines  as  a  medium  is 
high,  but  of  course  depends  both  on  the 
character  of  the  magazine  and  on  that  of 
the  subscription  list.     Scott  observed  600 

40 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

men  in  the  Chicago  public  library,  noticing 
what  part  of  the  periodical  they  were 
reading  at  the  moment  observed.  He  found 
10%%  of  these  men  reading  advertise- 
ments, and  remarks  that  probably  few  did 
not  look  at  the  advertising  pages  before 
leaving.  A  prominent  advertising  expert, 
knowing  the  Chicago  library,  remarks  that 
these  results  are  not  typical  of  general  cir- 
culation, that  libraries  are  always  full  of 
loafers  who  never  buy  and  seldom  read, 
but  who  come  in  to  pass  away  the  time  by 
looking  at  the  pictures.  Concerning  trade 
journals,  little  need  be  said.  Appeals  here 
much  resemble  classified  advertisements. 
They  reach  a  selected  class  of  readers, 
those  for  whom  they  are  intended,  and  are 
often,  by  this  very  fact,  full  of  news  in- 
terest of  a  business  kind. 

II.  Circulars,  Hand  Bills,  Posters,  Bulletin 
Boards,  Electric  Signs,  Placards  and  Signs  in 
Street  Cars. — The  news  interest  is  largely  absent 
here,  and  for  two  reasons : 

1.  There  is  no  news  interest  to  be  contended 
with. 

41 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

2.  Their  size  or  duration  forbids  the  news  in- 
terest type  for  lack  of  space  or  time. 

For  such  media  the  publicity  appeal  is  hence 
psychologically  adapted  with  its  simple  purpose 
and  mechanical  method.  Perhaps  the  chief  excep- 
tion is  to  be  found  in  the  case  of  car  advertise- 
ments. In  the  average  city,  each  inhabitant,  it  is 
said,  averages  10  minutes  daily  in  street  cars.  As 
to  number  of  people — in  1902,  five  thousand  mil- 
lion cash  fares  w^ere  collected  from  passengers  on 
street  cars  in  the  United  States,  besides  passes 
and  transfers.  For  the  past  year  the  New  York 
subway  averaged  over  1,000,000  passengers  daily. 

Appeals  here  have  longer  time  to  impress  them- 
selves than  in  papers  and  magazines,  and  the  aver- 
age passenger  is  unoccupied.  Hence,  there  is  not 
so  much  need  of  devices  for  catching  attention, 
and  more  room  for  use  of  logic,  persuasion,  affir- 
mation, beauty,  etc.,  than  in  other  places.  But 
there  is  more  need  of  devices  for  holding  atten- 
tion because  of  competing  cards.  The  effect  of  a 
suggestion  is  determined  not  only  by  its  force 
but  by  its  duration  as  well. 

III.  Size,  Form,  Decoration,  Color,  and  Illumi- 
nation of  Store,  Comfortable  Service,  Waiting 
Chairs,   Courteous   Attendance,   etc. — This    is    a 

42 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

more  or  less  indirect  form  of  solicitation,  but  a 
very  successful  one,  other  things  being  approxi- 
mately equal.  It  is  an  indirect  appeal  to  the  feel- 
ings exclusively,  hence  is  a  distinct  psychological 
type  of  advertising. 

IV.  Printed  and  Stamped  Novelties,  as  Lead 
Pencils,  Paper  Weights,  Note  Books,  Calendars, 
Knives,  Rulers,  Tapes,  Toys,  Puzzles,  etc. — The 
value  of  these  depends  on  their  utility,  which  en- 
sures their  constant  observation;  their  appropri- 
ateness, which  should  reinforce  the  mere  name; 
and  their  distribution  to  the  right  parties,  those 
who  do  the  buying.  I  have  heard  of  a  leather 
wallet  handed  out  by  one  John  Bauer,  grocer, 
which  amply  fulfilled  its  purpose,  and  led  its 
owner  time  after  time  to  John  Bauer 's  counter.  I 
recall,  also,  quantities  of  cheap  memorandum 
books  advertising  Hostetter's  Bitters  which  al- 
ways found  their  resting  place  in  the  street  or 
stove.  It  is  probable  that  this  medium,  if  care- 
fully handled,  is  capable  of  good  results  and  in 
the  adequate  form  is  not  sufficiently  utilized. 

One  of  the  strongest  points  in  it  is  the  element 
of  good  will  created  by  a  gift.  We  instinctively 
feel  approval  of  the  man  who  gives  us  something, 
and  the  psychology  of  good  ivill  in  the  novelty 
could  be  developed  at  great  length.     This  is  the 

43 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

basis  of  the  old  idea  of  salesmanship  a  la  carte, 
and  though  the  idea  is  being  abandoned  by  sales- 
men, this  is  not  because  it  was  not  good  in  its  day. 
It  needs  a  rest,  and  soon  will  be  as  effective  as 
ever.  A  good  discussion  of  the  principles  under- 
lying this  type  of  appeal  may  be  found  in  Bunt- 
ing's "Specialty  Advertising." 

V.  Registers,  Directories,  Theater  Programs, 
etc.,  Resembling  Class  II. — Advertisements  here 
do  not  hope  to  compete  in  interest  with  other  con- 
tents of  the  medium.  They  utilize  moments  of  mo- 
notony or  other  incidental  moments.  The  adver- 
tisements, for  instance,  in  the  directory  cannot 
hope  to  compete  with  the  reason  for  opening  the 
book.  They  are  read  while  waiting  for  ' '  central, ' ' 
while  waiting  for  the  curtain  to  rise,  or  for  the 
porter  to  bring  in  the  baggage.  Hence  publicity 
or  reminder  will  be  their  chief  aim,  except  in  so 
far  as  they  are  classified  advertisements :  hotels, 
restaurants,  garages,  liveries,  etc. 

VI.  Delivery  Wagons,  Street  Banners,  Floats, 
etc. — These  are  commonly  used  for  emphasizing 
places  of  business,  for  invitation,  or  for  mere  pub- 
licity, but  also  can  be  utilized  for  atmospheric  ef- 
fect, hence  resemble  Class  III. 

VII.  Samples,  Catalogues,  Agents,  Traveling 
Men. — The  firm  here  comes  directly  to  the  buyer. 

44 


ANALYSIS    OF    TASK    AND    MEDIA 

There  is  little  or  no  question  of  attention.  The 
personal  element  of  the  appeal  usually  guaran- 
tees initial  attention  and  also  has  much  to  do  in 
determining  the  further  course  of  the  response. 

VIII.  In  a  separate  class  we  may  include  the 
personal  communication,  the  form  letter,  the  "fol- 
low-up ' '  literature  of  booklet  and  pamphlet.  This 
form  of  solicitation  seems  to  constitute  a  connect- 
ing link  between  public  advertising  and  the  direct 
work  of  agents  and  salesmen.  There  seems  at 
present  to  be  some  uncertainty  among  advertising 
men  as  to  whether  such  appeals  should  so  far  as 
possible  simulate  personal  correspondence,  or 
whether,  for  instance,  the  form  letter  should  be 
frankly  impersonal.  This  is  not  a  point  on  which 
a  priori  opinions  have  much  weight.  Experi- 
mental tests  are  needed  before  any  safe  conclu- 
sions can  be  drawn.  An  "armchair  psychology " 
could  easily  specify  and  generalize  and  dogmatize 
here,  but  an  experimental  science  must  wait  for 
more  data. 

Having  taken  this  general  view  of  the  situation, 
let  us  now  consider  the  four  tasks,  and  study  the 
psychological  factors  involved  in  each. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  FIEST  TASK:  CATCHING  THE  ATTENTION 

Attention  may  be  defined  in  two  ways:  (1)  As 
an  act  of  adjustment — or  we  may  speak  first  of 
the  act  of  attention.  This  is  what  happens  when 
we  take  notice  of  a  stimulus.  It  is  almost  synony- 
mous with  perceiving,  and  means  that  the  given 
stimulus  has  become  clear,  and  that  there  has 
been  an  act  of  accommodation  in  the  sense  organ 
employed — eye,  ear,  finger  tips — which  tends  to 
bring  about  still  clearer  perception. 

(2)  This  is  the  point  at  which  we  plainly  dis- 
tinguish attention  according  to  its  second  defi- 
nition— as  a  state  of  consciousness,  or  the  state  of 
attention.  This  attentive  state  is  characterized  by 
the  dominance  of  one  idea,  image,  impression,  or 
a  set  of  these  and  the  subordination  of  all  others. 
Consciousness  always  has  a  focal  point,  and  this 
focal  point  is  always  occupied  by  the  thing  to 
which  we  are  attending  at  the  time.  We  may 
represent  this  state  by  some  such  figure  as  a 
wave,  the  crest  corresponding  to  the  focal  point 

46 


FIRST    TASK:    CATCHING    THE    ATTENTION 

and  the  slope  corresponding  to  the  margin  of  the 
field;  or  we  may  liken  it  to  the  field  of  vision 
which  always  has  a  fixation  point  which  is  clear 
and  a  margin  which  is  obscure.  The  following 
figures  will  serve  as  examples: 


Forms  of  Focal  Points  of  Attention 


The  matter  of  attention  is  not  wholly  an  arbi- 
trary one.  The  individual  consciousness  does  not 
deliberately  decide  what  shall  be  attended  to  and 
what  not  by  an  act  of  will.    If  it  did  the  field  of 

47 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

advertising  and  selling  would  find  itself  astonish- 
ingly limited  in  its  field  of  effective  appeal. 

But  the  act  of  attention  is  largely  controlled  by 
heredity,  past  experience,  mood,  interest,  and 
character  of  the  individual.  Far  down  in  the 
scale  of  animal  life  we  can  detect  the  rudimentary 
basis  of  what  we  call  attention.  There  we  call  it 
"prepotency  of  stimuli."  We  find  these  lower 
forms  indifferent  and  unresponsive  to  many 
forms  of  stimulation,  but  reacting  vigorously  and 
quickly  to  others.  These  "prepotent  stimuli/'  we 
find,  are  highly  important  in  the  life  of  the  ani- 
mal concerned,  although,  so  far  as  we  know,  he  is 
utterly  unaware  of  their  significance.  Thus,  the 
cock-roach  always  retreats  from  the  light  toward 
the  shadow,  while  the  moth  leaves  darkness  for 
light,  even  singeing  its  wings  through  the  irre- 
sistible attraction  of  the  flame.  The  young  chick 
pecks  instinctively  at  certain  kinds  of  objects,  the 
new-born  kitten  is  attracted  by  certain  impres- 
sions of  touch  and  smell  and  reacts  to  them.  Even 
among  the  microscopic  animals  tropisms  are 
found — certain  strong  and  apparently  mechanical 
reactions  of  approach  and  appropriation  directed 
toward  certain  colors,  objects,  temperatures,  etc. 

So  in  human  consciousness,  not  all  stimuli  be- 
come effective.     The  phenomenon  of  adaptation 

48 


FIRST    TASK:    CATCHING    THE    ATTENTION 

clearly  shows  this.  We  soon  become  adapted  to 
the  presence  of  the  hat  on  our  head,  the  clothes 
on  our  back,  even  to  the  pebble  in  our  shoe  or  the 
temperature  of  the  stoking  room.  We  are  con- 
stantly passing  things  without  seeing  or  hearing 
them.  We  come  in  from  the  night  and  do  not 
know  whether  or  not  the  stars  are  out,  whether  or 
not  the  evening  train  just  came  in,  whether  or  not 
we  locked  the  door  behind  us.  There  are  two  rea- 
sons for  this  apparent  obtuseness: 

1.  The  range  of  attention,  which  we  shall  later 
see  to  be  extremely  limited,  so  that  at  any 
given  moment  we  can  attend  to  a  very  few 
things  only,  being  oblivious  to  or  only 
vaguely  conscious  of  all  else  that  is  hap- 
pening. 

2.  Attention  follows  interest. — Generally 
speaking,  we  attend  to  things  because  they 
interest  us  or  have  some  vital  import  in 
our  lives.  We  cannot  attend  to  things  that 
do  not  have,  from  one  point  of  view  or  an- 
other, interest  for  us,  for  all  that  we  mean 
by  the  interest  which  a  thing  has  is  its 
power  to  attract  us,  to  lead  us  about  and 
to  direct  our  action  toward  it. 

49 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

There  are  two  kinds  of  interesting  things : 

A.  The  first  kind  includes  things  which  are  in- 
teresting only  because  of  their  consequences — 
their  immediate  or  remote  results — such  stimuli 
as  the  creaking  of  an  axle,  a  sudden  flash  of  light, 
the  report  made  by  a  bursting  tire,  palpitation  of 
the  heart.  These  things  have  no  intrinsic  inter- 
est; we  do  not  care  to  sit  and  contemplate  them 
for  their  own  sake.  But  they  may  mean  some 
danger,  they  may  require  some  act  of  adjustment 
on  our  part,  etc.  These  incentives  to  attention 
we  may  describe  by  the  word  mechanical.  To  such 
stimuli  we  attend  only  until  we  have  learned  their 
significance,  have  discovered  whether  or  not  their 
consequences  are  to  be  important.  Then  we  turn 
at  once  to  things  which  may  be  in  themselves  in- 
teresting. Only  children  and  savages  are  inter- 
ested in  these  mechanical  incentives  for  their  own 
sake.  We  shall  see  later  that  this  type  of  incen- 
tive is  well  represented  in  current  devices  for  ad- 
vertising and  selling  goods. 

B.  In  contrast  with  this  group  of  mechanical 
incentives  stands  another  type  of  appeal  which  is 
in  and  for  itself  interesting — a  baseball  game,  a 
battleship,  an  advertising  speech  by  the  Mayor, 
a  Hecker's  food  advertisement,  the  rainbow,  a 
gorgeous  sunset,  may  serve  as  examples.     Ap- 

50 


FIRST   TASK:    CATCHING   THE    ATTENTION 

peals  of  tills  sort  we  may  designate  interest  in- 
centives. Irrespective  of  any  consequences,  either 
immediate  or  remote,  we  find  these  things  inter- 
esting, intrinsically  interesting.  "We  not  only  at- 
tend to  them  initially,  but  our  attention  is  held 
by  them  through  many  consecutive  moments  or 
hours.  And  this  type  of  appeal  we  shall  also  find 
represented  in  current  appeals  employed  in  the 
business  of  distributing  goods. 

CAUSES  OF  ATTENTION 

There  are  four  principal  ways  in  which  atten- 
tion may  be  brought  about : 

(a)  By  increased  relative  intensity  of  the 
stimulus. 

(b)  By  the  intrinsic  interest  of  the  stimulus. 

(c)  By  accommodation  of  the  sense  organs  to 
be  used,  so  that  the  incoming  impression 
may  be  received  to  best  advantage. 

(d)  By  preperception — anticipatory  prepa- 
ration, from  within,  of  the  ideational  cen- 
ters to  be  employed  when  the  stimulus 
arrives. 

Attention  is  often  classified  as  voluntary,  in- 
voluntary,  and   spontaneous.     These   forms   are 

51 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

clearly  seen  to  represent  only  different  combina- 
tions of  the  four  methods  just  enumerated.  Thus 
voluntary  attention  is  brought  about  by  methods 
(c)  and  (d).  Involuntary  attention  is  that  pro- 
duced by  method  (a),  and  spontaneous  attention 
that  effected  by  methods  (a)  and  (b).  It  is  ap- 
parent that  advertising  can  employ  only  two  of 
the  four  possible  methods  of  attracting  attention, 
namely  those  two  methods  by  which  spontaneous 
attention  is  brought  about.  It  follows,  then,  that 
these  two  methods  must  be  used  as  effectively  as 
possible.  It  is,  of  course,  further  true  that  when 
we  come  to  the  second  task,  that  of  holding  atten- 
tion, we  shall  see  that  voluntary  attention  may 
also  come  to  play  an  important  part. 

RESULTS   AND    LAWS   OF    ATTENTION 

Before  further  analyzing  these  methods  of  in- 
tensity and  interest,  let  us  learn  what  the  result 
of  attention  will  be  when  we  have  once  secured 
it.  The  results  of  attention  will  determine  to  a 
great  degree  the  nature  of  our  next  inquiry: 
"How  can  an  appeal  attract  attention?"  Before 
we  turn  to  advertisements  in  particular,  what  are 
the  results  or  laws  of  attention,  in  general? 

I.  The  process  attended  to  becomes  clearer  and 
more  distinct  than  others.    This  is  well  illustrated 

52 


FIRST    TASK:    CATCHING    THE    ATTENTION 

by  attention  to  the  hidden  figure  in  a  puzzle-pic- 
ture. Attend  to  the  figure,  it  looms  up  clearly, 
while  the  rest  of  the  picture  fades  into  the  obscure 
margin  of  consciousness.  Attend  to  the  back- 
ground, on  the  other  hand,  and  this  in  turn  be- 
comes sharply  defined,  while  the  hidden  figure  is 
blurred. 

II.  The  process  attended  to  becomes  more  in- 
tense, especially  if  it  was  originally  very  faint. 
Attend  to  a  very  faint  light  or  a  sound — a  star  or 
the  tick  of  a  watch — or  attend  to  a  particular  in- 
strument in  an  orchestra.  The  stimulus  attended 
to  becomes  not  only  clearer  but  it  seems  to  be 
louder  as  well. 

III.  The  process  attended  to  becomes  increased 
in  duration,  especially  when  it  is  otherwise  very 
short.  Moments  of  time,  if  attended  to,  pass 
slowly.  The  long  drawn  out  diminuendo  of  a  vio- 
lin may  seem  continued  after  the  actual  vibration 
has  ceased,  especially  if  the  suggestion  is  rein- 
forced by  continued  movement  of  the  bow.  The 
headlines  which  compel  strong  attention  or  the 
cuts  that  attract  the  eye  persist  in  consciousness 
according  to  the  degree  of  attention  bestowed 
upon  them.  Because  they  persist  longer  they  have 
greater  opportunity  for  association  with  other  ex- 
periences, and  hence  are  more  likely  to  be  recalled 

53 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

than  some  other  processes  attended  to  less  in- 
tently. This  result  is  closely  related  to  the  next 
law. 

IV.  The  process  attended  to  rises  more  quickly 
into  consciousness  than  do  other  processes  enter- 
ing simultaneously.  We  can  illustrate  this  by  the 
"complication  experiment"  of  the  laboratory.  If 
in  this  experiment  a  sound  and  flash  of  light  are 
so  arranged  as  to  occur  at  the  same  moment,  they 
will  seem  not  synchronous  but  successive,  the  one 
attended  to  appearing  to  precede  the  other.  Un- 
der this  law  we  may  also  put  the  general  fact  that 
at  a  subsequent  time,  if  there  is  occasion  to  recall 
the  process,  the  one  attended  to  most  strongly 
tends  to  recur  more  quickly  and  easily  than 
others. 

The  foregoing  related  laws  are  both  theoretic- 
ally and  practically  important.  From  them  it  fol- 
lows not  only  that  an  appeal  should  be  able  to 
attract  attention,  but  that,  other  things  being 
equal,  it  should  attract  as  much  attention  as  pos- 
sible. For  the  appeal  compelling  the  strongest 
degree  of  attention  will  be  clearer,  more  intense, 
and  more  active  than  that  less  strongly  attended 
to.  As  we  shall  see  later,  the  power  of  a  sugges- 
tion depends  not  only  on  the  fact  of  attention  but 
also  on  the  degree  of  attention. 

54 


FIRST    TASK:    CATCHING    THE    ATTENTION 

V.  Attention  is  the  basis  of  every  will-act,  and 
the  only  basis.  Every  idea  or  impression  has  its 
inevitable  motor  issue.  Nervous  energy,  once 
generated,  must  be  liberated,  discharged,  over  an 
outgoing  pathway.  Just  what  pathway  is  taken 
is  immaterial  so  far  as  the  nervous  system  is  con- 
cerned. It  follows,  then,  that  the  response  to  the 
stimulus  which  is  strongly  attended  to  drains  off 
the  energy  generated  by  marginal  stimuli,  with  the 
result  that  this  response  is  strengthened.  This 
is  the  basis  of  an  act  of  will  or  choice.  It  is  the 
fundamental  principle  of  response.  When  two 
processes  divide  the  field  of  attention  between 
them,  each  tends  to  set  off  its  appropriate  re- 
sponse. The  result  is  two  weak  responses,  or,  if 
the  two  stimuli  are  antagonistic,  no  response  at 
all.  If  my  attention  now  shifts  from  one  to  the 
other,  I  vacillate,  am  weak-willed,  undecided.  But 
the  moment  that  I  attend  exclusively  to  either 
idea,  its  motor  consequences  ensue  at  once,  and  I 
have  responded  to  the  suggestion.  I  have  willed. 
This  is  the  fundamental  law  of  suggestion  and 
response.  Every  idea,  if  attended  to  exclusively, 
tends  to  realize  itself  in  action.  We  will  have  this 
principle  before  us  again  when  we  come  to  the 
third  task  of  the  appeal. 

Do  not  be  impatient  with  this  prolonged  analy- 

55 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

sis  of  the  attentive  state.  We  are  trying  to  get 
at  the  very  bottom  of  the  principles  of  appeal  and 
response,  and  this  rather  abstract  examination  is 
essential  to  the  more  concrete  things  that  are  soon 
to  follow.  To  discuss  many  other  extremely  in- 
teresting results  would  be  to  go  too  far  afield  for 
the  purposes  of  this  book.  But  there  are  two 
more  principles  that  must  not  be  omitted.  From 
the  practical  point  of  view  they  are  the  most  im- 
portant of  the  seven.  They  cover  not  so  much 
the  results  of  attention  as  they  do  the  behavior 
of  attention  itself. 

VI.  This  law  is  that  attention  fluctuates,  comes 
in  beats  or  pulses ;  the  state  of  attention  is  of  short 
duration.  Our  consciousness  cannot  remain  in- 
tent on  one  object  or  idea.  It  must  roam  about, 
much  like  a  bird  flying  from  bough  to  bough.  It 
cannot  remain  on  the  same  bough  constantly.  It 
must,  after  a  given  time,  leap  over  to  another 
bough  and  then  return,  or  else  it  must  shift  its 
position  on  the  same  bough  every  so  often,  chang- 
ing from  one  foot  to  another  or  facing  about  or 
lighting  on  various  parts  of  the  same  perch. 

The  length  of  these  waves  or  pulses  of  atten- 
tion is  usually  about  four  seconds  in  our  experi- 
mental researches,  two  seconds  coming  to  the  crest 
and  two  seconds  dying  away.     Much  work  is  be- 

56 


FIRST    TASK:    CATCHING    THE    ATTENTION 

ing  clone  by  modern  experimentalists  to  discover 
the  neurological  reason  for  this  rhythm  of  atten- 
tion. It  constitutes  a  fascinating  field  of  modern 
investigation.  But,  here  again,  to  go  farther 
would  be  to  digress. 

I  show  you  here  the  record  of  such  a  laboratory 
experiment,  taken  by  one  of  my  students. 


An  Experiment  on  Attention.  The  wavy  line  marks  off  fifths 
of  seconds.  When  the  straight  line  is  on  the  low  level,  a  faint 
visual  stimulus  was  in  the  field  of  attention.  The  high  level 
indicates  the  disappearance  *  of  the  stimulus  from  attention. 


This  law  of  attention  will  be  our  chief  concern 
when  we  come  to  the  second  talk,  that  of  Holding 
Attention. 

VII.  Finally,  in  this  abstract  analysis,  we  must 
include  the  general  law  that  the  range  of  atten- 
tion is  limited.    We  may  distinguish  here  between 

57 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

the  focus  of  attention,  and  the  margin  of  atten- 
tion. You  will  all  remember  in  this  connection 
that  five  acts  have  long  been  recognized  as  the 
artistic  limit  for  a  drama,  five  feet  for  a  line,  and 
preferably  five  lines  for  a  stanza,  five  chief  char- 
acters in  a  dialogue.  And  these  are  all  cases 
where  one  has  the  sympathy  of  the  reader  from 
the  beginning.  In  framing  the  artistic  solicita- 
tion for  his  eye,  it  is  better  to  be  on  the  safe  side 
and  allow,  say,  one  fact  to  the  focus,  one  to  the 
field,  and  one  to  the  margin.  But  it  may  be  said 
here  that  it  is  five  units  that  can  be  compassed  in 
a  single  act  of  attention.  If  I  expose  five  or  six 
small  dots  for  a  fraction  of  a  second  you  can 
report  their,  number  correctly,  but  more  than  that 
many  you  cannot  perceive  accurately.  You  can, 
however,  see  five  letters,  each  composed  of  dots, 
just  as  easily,  and  even  five  words,  if  the  words 
are  familiar  enough  to  be  perceived  as  units. 

These  facts  have  a  very  practical  bearing.  They 
mean  that  the  ideal  headline  should  not  contain 
over  five  units.  Usually  these  units  will  be  single 
words.  But  as  a  matter  of  fact  a  sentence  can 
be  grasped  as  a  whole  providing  it  can  be  broken 
into,  say,  four  phrase  units  of  perhaps  four  words 
each,  or,  preferably,  three.  If  I  say,  "The  proper 
length  for  a  comfortable  sentence  is  felt  to  be 

58 


FIRST    TASK:    CATCHING    THE    ATTENTION 

about  sixteen  words/'  my  sentence  is  seen  to  be 
thus  constructed.  It  lias  four  phrase  elements  of 
three  or  four  words  each,  and  the  sentence  is 
easily  grasped  as  a  whole.  But  if  I  say,  "By  a 
careful  experimentally  conducted  investigation  of 
the  laws  of  attention,  psychologists  have  been  led 
to  conclude  that  the  most  favorable  sentence 
length  for  the  average  reader  is,  under  ordinary 
conditions,  approximately  sixteen  single  words,'' 
you  are  dismayed  by  the  length  and  structure  of 
the  sentence.  It  falls  to  pieces,  requiring  more 
than  one  effort  of  attention.  We  may  say,  then, 
that  nine  to  sixteen  words  make  a  clear  and  easily 
read  sentence.  That  is,  of  course,  only  an  ap- 
proximation. The  actual  number  in  any  given 
case  will  depend  on  the  ease  with  which  the  single 
words  group  themselves  into  phrase  units.  But 
good  headlines  will  seldom  be  found  with  more 
than  nine  and  usually  not  more  than  five  words. 
We  shall  have  a  great  deal  to  say  about  this  law 
of  attention  when  we  come  to  consider  the  second 
task. 


CHAPTER   V 

MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

So  much  for  the  state  of  attention  itself.  Let 
ns  now  turn  to  the  concrete  ways  of  bringing  it 
about.  You  will  recall  that  the  advertisement  can 
only  work  through  spontaneous  attention,  and 
that  this  state  can  be  brought  about  by  two  means : 
(1)  By  the  relative  intensification  of  the  stimuli. 
Under  this  head  comes  the  group  of  methods  which 
we  have  designated  mechanical  devices.  (2)  By 
the  intrinsic  interest  of  the  stimulus.  This  group 
we  classify  as  interest  incentives.  Naturally  and 
inevitably,  through  the  very  structure  of  our  ner- 
vous systems,  we  attend  to  stimuli  of  these  two 
kinds.  The  basis  for  their  power  over  us  lies 
either  in  the  physiology  of  all  nerve  tissue,  in  the 
inherited  results  of  remote  ancestral  experience, 
or  in  our  own  peculiar  past  history  and  desires 
for  the  future. 

Of  the  two  groups,  the  mechanical  devices,  al- 
though the  chief  means  employed  by  past  and  even 
by  most  contemporary  advertising,  are  the  least 

60 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

potent  and  in  many  cases  are  futile,  so  far  as  real 
returns  are  concerned.  I  have  often  been  asked 
to  state  what  in  my  opinion  would  be  the  next 
advance  step  in  advertising.  I  should  say  that 
the  most  effective  change  for  the  better  that  could 
be  made  is  the  change  from  mechanical  devices 
to  interest  incentives.  But  the  mechanical  devices 
are  much  used  at  present,  and  will  probably  al- 
ways be  employed  to  a  greater  or  less  degree ;  and 
for  certain  types  of  advertising  mechanical  de- 
vices are  effective.  The  mechanical  devices  fall 
into  six  chief  classes  according  as  the  method  used 
is  a  variation  of  intensity,  magnitude,  motion,  con- 
trast, surrounding  or  position. 

1.      INTENSITY 

Other  things  being  equal,  we  will,  of  course, 
attend  to  the  strongest  stimulus.  We  listen  to 
the  shrillest  newsboy,  the  loudest  barker  at  the 
side  show,  just  as  we  let  the  thunder  distract 
us  from  the  chirping  of  crickets.  But  this  is 
not  due  to  genuine  interest  in  the  strong  stimu- 
lus. A  strong  stimulus  causes  nervous  shock  and 
is  likely  to  constitute  or  indicate  a  source  of  dan- 
ger to  the  organism.  Those  of  our  ancestors  who 
failed  to  notice  intense  stimuli  perished  in  ava- 
lanches,   tornadoes,    etc.      Only    those    survived 

61 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

whose  nervous  systems  were  sensitive  to  abrupt 
changes,  and  they  passed  their  constitution  on 
down  to  us.  Besides,  a  strong  stimulus  means 
much  physical  energy  impinging  on  our  sense  or- 
gans, and  this  sets  up  strong  nervous  currents 
which  force  their  way  inward  in  spite  of  our 
wishes.  Fortunately,  however,  advertising  has 
but  little  use  for  this  device.  Advertising  is 
chiefly  a  visual  matter,  still  more  chiefly  a  matter 
of  printing,  and  the  range  of  possible  intensities 
in  printing  is  very  slight.  The  intense  lights  of 
an  electric  sign,  the  brilliant  colors  of  a  billboard 
placard  may  force  us  to  look  in  their  direction. 
But  they  may  force  us  just  as  quickly  to  look  away 
again.  They  may  attract  attention,  but  they  lack 
the  power  to  hold  it.  All  advertising  that  de- 
pends for  its  success  on  the  mere  noise  it  makes, 
on  the  sheer  intensity  of  its  horn,  is  likely  to  find 
the  two  to  be  in  inverse  ratio.  Only  savages 
and  children,  as  we  have  said,  delight  in  in- 
tensity of  stimulus  for  its  own  sake.  Savages 
beat  their  tom-toms  and  children  pound  and  kick 
from  delight  in  the  activity  of  a  sense  organ,  and 
perhaps  also  because  their  undeveloped  senses  do 
not  get  the  same  degree  of  sensation  from  the 
intense  stimulation  that  wTe  do. 

The  rumble  of  the  elevated  train  never  attracts 

62 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

my  attention  unless  it  interferes  with  my  pres= 
ent  activity,  and  even  then  it  does  not  attract  but 
repels  me.  But  the  plaintive  squeal  of  some  old 
woman's  hand  organ,  the  whistle  of  a  fraternity 
brother,  some  curious  brogue  in  the  speech  of  a 
passerby,  some  comic  incident  of  the  street,  at- 
tracts me  at  once  in  spite  of  its  mildness.  A  man 
slipped  on  the  icy  walk  the  other  day.  He  made 
no  noise,  but  slipped  down  softly  and  flatly.  The 
negro  garbage  collector  who  happened  to  be  pass- 
ing saw  him  just  as  he  was  clambering  to  his  feet 
again.  "Do  it  again,"  shouted  the  driver  of  the 
garbage  wagon,  "I  didn't  see  you  that  time." 
This  trivial  incident  had  greater  attention  value 
with  the  driver  than  did  the  roar  of  the  traffic 
around  him. 

The  noisy  honk  of  the  automobile  does  not  at- 
tract you  but  gets  you  out  of  the  way.  The  in- 
tense stimulus  means  danger.  The  soft  siren  call 
on  the  automobile  had  to  be  abandoned,  not  be- 
cause people  would  not  attend  to  it,  but  because 
they  did  not  run  away  from  it.  If  you  want  to 
appeal  to  children  and  to  savages,  then,  you  may 
use  the  intensity  device  with  some  degree  of  ef- 
fectiveness. For  civilized  people  and  grown-ups 
the  blaring  seldom  attracts  attention  beyond  it- 
self. 

63 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

2.       MAGNITUDE 

Much  has  been  written  concerning  the  rela- 
tive attention  value  of  small  and  large  spaces, 
cards,  signs,  cuts,  type,  etc.,  in  advertising,  and 
several  suggestive  attempts  have  been  made  to 
study  the  matter  experimentally.  The  opinion 
of  advertising  men  seems  to  point  to  propor- 
tionate increase  in  values  with  the  amount  of 
space  used.  The  use  of  full-page  advertisements 
has  increased,  as  Scott  has  shown.  Thus  in  1892 
the  Century  Magazine  contained  only  18  per 
cent,  full-page  advertisements  as  compared  with 
43  per  cent,  in  1908.  There  is  also  a  tendency  to 
use  two  page  "spreads"  more  and  more. 

Scott  tested  over  500  people,  giving  each  the 
same  magazine  (Century),  asking  them  to  "look 
it  over"  in  a  general  way,  but  not  to  read 
long  articles  or  poetry.  After  having  examined 
the  magazine  for  10  minutes,  each  was  asked  to 
write  out  all  he  remembered  of  all  the  advertise- 
ments he  had  seen.  The  same  investigator  also 
made  up  a  magazine  by  choosing  100  pages  of 
varied  advertising  pages  from  a  large  number  of 
magazines,  so  as  to  get  variety  of  material,  size, 
form,  type,  etc.  These  pages  were  then  bound 
together  along  with  reading  matter  and  60  adults 

64 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

were  asked  to  "look  through"  the  magazine,  for 
an  average  time  of  10  minutes.  Each  then  men- 
tioned each  advertisement  remembered,  gave  its 
contents,  and  was  then  again  given  the  magazine 
and  asked  to  indicate  all  the  pages  now  recognized 
as  having  been  seen  before. 

The  results  of  these  experiments  were  as  fol- 
lows: In  the  number  of  times  the  advertisement 
was  mentioned  from  memory,  in  the  number  of 
times  it  was  later  recognized,  and  in  the  number 
of  times  it  conveyed  definite  information  as  to  the 
general  class  of  goods  advertised,  the  specific 
name  or  brand  of  the  goods,  name  and  address 
of  the  firm,  price,  etc.,  the  rule  was  general  that 
the  full  page  was  more  than  twice  as  effective  as 
the  one-half  page.  The  half -page  was  also  more 
than  twice  as  effective  as  the  quarter-page,  and 
this  in  turn  more  than  twice  as  effective  as  the 
eighth-page.  Scott's  general  conclusion  is:  "The 
attention  and  memory  value  of  an  advertisement 
increases  as  the  size  of  the  advertisement  in- 
creases, and  the  increase  of  value  is  greater  than 
the  increase  in  the  amount  of  space  used. ' ' 

But  Scott  points  out  the  fact  that  the  quality 
of  the  advertisement,  that  is  its  content,  is  even 
more  important  than  its  size.  Indeed,  it  is  quite 
probable  that  the  increase  in  value  with  increase 

65 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

in  space,  in  these  experiments,  was  chiefly  due  to 
difference  in  the  contents  of  the  space.  A  large 
advertisement  is  likely  to  be  different  from  a 
small  one  in  things  other  than  mere  magnitude. 
The  large  space  permits  the  use  of  pictures,  of 
suggested  action,  removes  competition  by  monopo- 
lizing space,  and  also  makes  possible  greater  con- 
trast and  clearness.  It  is  probable,  then,  that  the 
increased  value  of  a  large  space  in  these  experi- 
ments came  not  from  the  mere  fact  of  magnitude, 
but  from  the  presence  of  interest  incentives  which 
the  magnitude  makes  possible,  but  of.  course  does 
not  necessarily  involve. 

When  the  content  of  the  space  is  kept  constant 
in  character  and  interest  there  is  no  evidence  that 
the  increase  in  returns  is  nearly  so  great  as  the 
increase  in  space  and  cost.  Of  course,  the  larger 
advertisement  will  be  more  likely  to  be  seen,  but 
it  must  be  seen  and  read  twice  as  much  or  more 
than  this  to  justify  the  increase  in  cost,  if  a  whole 
page  is  compared  with  a  half  page.  Time  after 
time  the  results  of  mail  order  advertising  are  said 
to  have  shown  only  an  increased  cost  per  reply 
when  greater  space  was  employed.  The  writer 
has  on  hand  sets  of  advertisements  in  which  the 
character  of  the  content,  the  medium,  and  the  com- 
modity advertised  have  all  been  kept  constant  and 

66 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

the  returns  measured  by  the  number  of  inquiries 
for  booklets,  etc.  The  results  from  these  sets  sug- 
gest a  more  or  less  definite  law  of  increase  under 
such  circumstances,  namely:  the  number  of  in- 
quiries tends  to  increase  as  the  square  root  of  the 
amount  of  space  used.  That  is  to  say,  use  four 
times  the  space  and  you  double  the  returns;  use 
nine  times  the  space  and  you  treble  the  returns, 
while  to  quadruple  the  number  of  replies  would 
require  sixteen  times  the  amount  of  space,  other 
factors  remaining  constant.  Some  such  law  of 
increase  may,  in  fact,  be  supposed  to  operate  in 
the  case  of  all  the  mechanical  incentives. 

This  is  an  interesting  point,  psychologically,  for 
it  falls  in  line  with  what  is  known  in  the  labora- 
tory as  the  psycho-physical  law,  according  to 
which  the  sensation  produced  by  a  stimulus  does 
not  increase  in  the  same  ratio  as  does  the  in- 
crease in  the  objective  intensity  of  the  stimulus, 
but  much  more  slowly/  approximately  as  the 
square  root  of  this  intensity.  We  know  that,  in 
many  other  fields  beyond  a  certain  point  this  law 
of  "diminishing  returns' '  holds — to  double  the 
amount  of  coal  consumed  does  not  double  the 
speed  of  a  boat ;  nor  can  twelve  laborers  produce,, 
from  a  given  limited  area  of  land  or  a  given  fac- 
tory equipment  and  floor  space,  twice  the  produc- 

67 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 


tion  of  six  laborers  working  under  the  same  con- 
ditions. 

The    following    series    of    Graphite    advertise- 
ments indicates  a  similar  law.    These  appeals  ap- 


^■l*\  'iHLi^wOinfidcn.fce 


f: 


Jb*^*  U>i*^tW  ^Yu'itile 
J. 


i'  & -^-  v*jmj±*nv 


Ad.  No.  1 — 32  Replies.     %  Page 

peared  under  the  same  conditions  of  commodity 
and  medium,  and  all  three  rely  on  the  same  gen- 
eral type  of  attention  device.  No.  1,  an  adver- 
tisement occupying  one-eighth  of  a  page,  brought 


New  Edition  Is  Out 

ML  Graphite  3L 

as  a  Lubricant 

for  1910 


THIS  edition  is  just  off 
the  press — 64  pages  ol 
meaty  information  on 
the  science  and  practice  of 
graphite  lubrication  Plain, 
sensible  information  that 
you  can  apply  in  your 
everyday  work-  Big.  read- 
able type,  liberal  margiru. 
Be  among  the  first  to 
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is 


EWnulJt  F*CE  Copy  <n-A       ™ ™^™1 
ph  Dixon  Crucible  Co.  I 
Jersey  City,  N   J I 

Ad.  No.  2—32  Replies.     %  Page 

32  replies.  Several  others  of  the  same  size  and 
type  brought  from  21  to  42  replies.  No.  2  pre- 
sents the  same  appeal,  with  perhaps  a  somewhat 

(18 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

better  layout,  so  far  as  initial  attention  value  is 
concerned,  and  it  occupied  one-quarter  page,  twice 
the  amount  of  space  occupied  by  No.  1.     But  it 


Write  For  The  Newest  Edition 

M(lFai>bit¥\a^-k'':Lubri6ant'' 


jtai  off  this  pre**  wrth'*»HJlfie  Jwe^aJKf  ^«t*j«bx*tftrvet     ■  /       Regard- 
i  ihformaticin  on-  grapfcteJuDticatiott. ".  '-' -\ -^i;  ,  ,       '_•  ->  -.'      '  f  .      lessofthe 

-    '*-        '     --''  '■'"■    ''"  "-"'     •''-    • ' V  ''  V*  "    '■*"'  "'  "*      f  b  t>   '  f 

This  might -welt  tie  called  the 'power/  jwirse.  «fcfitien  since  -'      f  ,-  • 

'  work  ydu  are 

■most  interested 


it  dealt  almost  a«xeluM«.eJy  wn1j^w«;,hi>U5i  problems 
in  lubrication.  • '         .  i  "    *'^|,-';  -"'-<-.      '         *"•- 


■   *  "Gsrajibite;  *s~ «vL^bricanfe*5_  t'Mj  -edition,, 
;_  gives  the   results-'  of   experjmenti-.^f   tb*-jfinest  '„ 
,  scientific  authorities  oaJuhrioatiob.  "'In-aadition,      l- 
it  reports  practical  experiences- with  lhe>  tree' 
of  graphite  by  the-  best  brains 'jd  the  pi^ctt-.  .-  ■_    "' 
i    cal  fields  o£  engineering.       '   ,    ' '      '  .-  '"„ 


^RAPyiTE 
LUEiRICAMT 

fXEVSHT H'   EDITION 


in,  you  will  prob- 
ably find  some  vital 
information  in  this  new 
edition-  of    "Graphite 
;•--'•.  »"  a»  «,!  Lubricant." 

'1J  yis«  hayc  "had  any  of  the 
•previous,  editions  of  this  standard 
Dixon  work,  or  if  you  are  a  user  of 
graplriMi  in  '  any  form,  you  will  no 
doufjt  send  fof  this  oejvest  issue.  But 
if.yoct  have  oo  interest  in  the  subject 
now;;  A  k  not'tinlikefy  that  tome  day 
•you  \vifr  find  it  desirable  ot  necessary 
to  be  posted-'on-  gtaphite  lubrication. 


1  Better"  write  right  away  for 
Free -Copy  94-B. 


1.  Joseph  Dixon  Crucible 
Company 


Jersey  City,  N.  J. 


Ad.  No.  3 — 75  Eeplies.    Full  Page 


brought  only  the  same  number  of  replies.  No.  3, 
very  similar  to  both  1  and  2  in  general  content, 
but  occupying  a  full  page,  brought  only  75  re- 
plies.   That  is  to  say,  it  is  four  times  the  size  of 

69 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

No.  1,  but  brought  only  twice  as  many  replies,  as 
we  should  expect,  under  the  square  root  law. 

Of  course  if  the  style  of  the  appeal  is  changed, 
these  results  will  vary  correspondingly.  Thus  No. 
4,  which  introduces  an  interest  incentive  (picture, 
suggested  activity)  is  no  larger  than  No,  2,  but 


Write  for 
Your  Copy 
ByNo.9t-M 

This  Is  It-ll*  Edition 

"Graphite  as  »  ItUbtJfeaSft/    *9*°  ed&ioo. 
tells  how  aad  wfev  grftptwip  jaferioatcs.  and 

expSaius  ifee-  adioft  of  iH0trent  ivnm  og 

graphite. 

it  gtow  results  of  wJentfck--  te=is  oi  hweteal  aatlwrt- 

tits,  sikI  sIkws  Iiovf  graphite  is  ttjJfEjed  W>  the  iaWi- 

~cattai*>J  psaritoftg  all  mactewtv-- 

ValttAliSt:  m&^nK*&m  few-  y»»s  t*13*  Vu°  cao  ™":  ili 

Joseph    Dixon  Crucible  Co. 

Jersey  City.  N-  J. 


Ad.  No.  4 — 186  Replies.    %  Page 


brought  186  replies.  This  last  appeal  will  be  re- 
ferred to  again  under  the  section  on  suggested 
activity. 

Miinsterberg  has  recently  reported  experi- 
ments designed  to  measure  the  value  of  large 
spaces,  appearing  once,  as  compared  with  that  of 
smaller  spaces  appearing  often  enough  to  make 
the  final  space  occupied  equal  in  both  cases. 
Based  on  the  total  attention  and  memory  values, 
the  relative  values  are  as  follows: 

70 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

Full  page,  appearing  once 33 

Half  page,  appearing  twice 30 

Quarter  page,  appearing  four  times 49 

Eighth  page,  eight  times 44 

Twelfth  page,  twelve  times .47 

On  the  basis  of  the  chances  of  the  advertise- 
ment being  included  among  the  first  10  remem- 
bered, in  time,  the  values  are : 

Full  page,  appearing  once 0.5 

Half  page,  appearing  twice 1.2 

Quarter  page,  four  times 2.9 

Eighth  page,  eight  times 2.3 

Twelfth  page,  twelve  times 2.4 

In  general,  that  is  to  say,  the  small  spaces  re- 
peated are  more  effective  than  the  large  space 
appearing  but  once.  Of  course,  these  values  are 
not  entirely  dependent  on  the  difference  in  space, 
but  also  upon  the  factor  of  repetition,  which  is  in 
itself  a  form  of  mechanical  device,  if  the  appeal 
is  attended  to  when  repeated. 

Further  information  bearing  in  this  same  gen- 
eral direction  is  afforded  by  several  experiments 
conducted  by  Dr.  E.  K.  Strong,  Jr.,  Research  Fel- 
low in  Columbia  University,  for  the  New  York 
Advertising  Men's  League  and  the  National  Asso- 
ciation of  Advertising  Managers.  Perhaps  the 
only  argument  in  favor  of  magnitude  is  that  ad- 
vanced by  some  practical  advertising  men,  to  the 
effect  that  the  additional  prestige  and  suggestion 

71 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

of  prosperity  conveyed  by  the  large  space  em- 
ployed tend  to  create  a  favorable  impression  in 
the  mind  of  the  reader. 

So  far  as  the  experience  of  the  psychologist 
goes,  mere  magnitude  possesses  the  same  defect 
as  does  mere  intensity,  and  to  even  greater  de- 
gree. The  large  object  does  attract  initial  atten- 
tion. Unusually  large  things  possess  a  certain 
importance  in  the  life  of  any  animal;  they  are 
likely  to  be  dangerous,  unmanageable,  to  be  avoid- 
ed, etc.  Therefore,  the  first  appearance  of  a  mam- 
moth billboard  or  electric  sign  will  attract  atten- 
tion. But  as  soon  as  the  real  character,  the  harm- 
lessness,  of  the  thing  is  learned,  it  will  be  passed 
by  unnoticed,  just  as  are  the  Singer  building,  the 
Metropolitan  tower,  the  Imperator,  and  the 
enormous  signs  and  displays  of  the  Great  White 
Way.  Magnitude  in  advertising  is  probably  of 
real  value  only  in  so  far  as  it  makes  possible  cer- 
tain more  genuine  interest  appeals. 

The  question  of  size  of  type  has  also  received 
frequent  discussion  and  investigation.  Gale  found 
progressive  increase  in  attention  value  with  in- 
crease in  size  of  type  from  two  to  six  millimeters. 
He  gives  the  table  on  page  73: 

Scott  studied  two  kinds  of  type  with  the  same 
body,  but  one  of  which  had  light  and  the  other 

72 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

heavy  face.  What  he  tried  to  discover  was  the 
time  required  to  read  these  two  kinds  of  type  and 
the  number  of  errors  made  in  such  reading.  For 
the  light  faced  type  the  total  time  of  six  observers 
was  147  minutes,  the  number  of  errors  132.  For 
the  heavy  face,  the  total  time  was  129  minutes,  the 

TAELE    IV 


Height  Type 

Relative  Legibility,  Per  Cent. 

Men 

Women 

Average 

2  mm 

4  mm 

5  mm 

6  mm 

8.7 
20.2 
27.7 
43.0 

11.6 
15.8 
27.5 
45.0 

10.1 
18.0 
27.6 
44.0 

errors  91.  Such  legibility  tests  should  be  carried 
further.  But  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  legi- 
bility and  attention  value  are  the  same  thing.  It 
is  in  general  true  that  the  more  easily  type  can 
be  read  the  more  agreeably  will  the  people  read 
it.  But  they  will  not  be  likely  to  read  it  just  be- 
cause it  is  legible.  Under  a  given  set  of  con- 
ditions a  certain  type  size,  a  certain  spacing  and 
massing  will  be  most  favorable.  But  adequate 
tests  of  this  matter,  from  the  practical  point  of 
view,  have  not  been  made.  More  will  be  said  on 
this  topic  in  another  connection. 

The  writer  would,  then,  be  inclined  to  stress  the 

73 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

futility  of  mere  size  as  an  effective  advertising 
device.  On  psychological  grounds  the  small  ad- 
vertisement with  intrinsic  interest  of  some  sort 
or  other — color,  cut,  action  suggested,  comic,  ap- 
peal to  special  instinct  or  feeling  or  value,  will  be 
more  effective,  and  less  expensive  as  well. 

3.   MOTION 

The  third  mechanical  incentive  to  attention 
is  that  of  a  moving  stimulus.  An  object  in  mo- 
tion has  much  higher  attention  value  than  a  sta- 
tionary thing.  This  is  true  far  down  in  the  ani- 
mal scale.  One  may  approach  very  close  to  a 
wild  animal  so  long  as  one's  accessory  movements 
are  inhibited.  A  squirrel  may  perch  on  my  hand, 
but  the  slightest  movement  of  a  near-by  object 
suffices  to  send  him  scurrying.  Hold  your  finger, 
for  instance,  in  the  edge  of  your  field  of  vision; 
you  are  not  able  to  see  it,  but  wriggle  it  a  little 
and  its  image  becomes  at  once  distinct.  Psycho- 
logically there  are  two  reasons  why  this  should  be 
true.  One  is  an  interest  reason,  viz.,  the  fact  that 
moving  objects  are  more  likely  to  contain  in  them 
possibilities  of  good  or  evil.  Hence  from  earliest 
experience  moving  objects  have  become  of  un- 
usual interest  and  significance  for  us.  The  second 
reason  is  a  mechanical  one,  viz.,  that  sensation  is 

74 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

only  consciousness  of  change.  We  become  rap- 
idly adapted  to  a  constant  stimulus  so  that  we  fail 
to  notice  the  weight  of  our  hats,  the  temperature 
of  the  room  we  are  in,  the  odors  of  the  subway. 
But  the  moment  a  change  occurs  it  is  detected, 
because  it  involves  fresh  and  unfatigued  sensitive 
surface.  So  keen  is  our  sense  of  movement  that 
we  can  detect  the  motion  of  a  point  on  the  skin 
long  before  we  can  tell  the  direction  in  which  it  is 
traveling.  This  is  the  basis  for  the  high  atten- 
tion value  of  rotating  barber  signs  and  display 
shelves,  shifting  bulletin  boards,  moving  pictures, 
flash  lights,  moving  frames  in  shoe  and  hat  stores. 
The  Old  Dutch  Cleanser  in  Harlem,  and  the 
Heatherbloom  petticoat  sign  are  instances  of  the 
initial  value  of  movement,  as  are  running  lights 
and  serpentines.  The  use  of  movement  is  cer- 
tainly one  of  the  most  effective  of  the  mechanical 
incentives,  but  it  has  in  common  with  all  mechan- 
ical devices  the  fault  of  failing  to  hold  attention 
when  once  it  is  caught,  and  the  further  defect  of 
rapidly  undergoing  adaptation.  You  must  not 
confuse  the  actual  use  of  movement  with  the 
somewhat  related  principle  of  suggested  action. 
Nothing  has  higher  attention  value  than  the  repro- 
duction of  a  fellow  creature  in  action.  But  this 
is  much  different  from  the  crude  use  of  mere  mo- 

75 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

tion  of  an  inanimate  object.  It  is  strictly  an  in- 
terest incentive  and  will  be  considered  fully  under 
that  heading. 

4.     contrast 

The  next  important  mechanical  device  is  that 
of  contrast.  Because  sensation  is  the  conscious- 
ness of  change,  any  great  or  striking  differ- 
ence in  the  intensity,  size,  color  or  character  of 
the  stimulus  produces  an  unusually  vivid  con- 
sciousness. The  gradual  appearance  of  an  elec- 
tric sign  would  pass  unnoticed,  but  the  alternation 
of  its  sudden  illumination  and  disappearance  at 
once  attracts  the  attention.  In  the  same  way  a 
striking  difference  between  foreground  and  back- 
ground has  strong  attention  value,  and  black  on 
white,  blue  on  yellow,  red  on  green  are  the  most 
striking  combinations  of  color,  because  the  two 
members  of  each  pair  are  contrasting  in  color.  A 
small  man  and  a  large  woman,  a  Shetland  pony 
harnessed  alongside  a  draught  horse,  would  have 
a  similar  attention  value.  So,  in  looking  through 
the  advertisements  of  a  magazine,  any  sharp  de- 
parture from  the  usual  appearance  of  the  pages 
in  size,  form,  color,  style  of  type,  content,  size  of 
type,  kind  of  cut,  possesses  strong  attention 
value.    And  in  our  day  of  manifold  advertisement 

76 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

pages  this  is  an  important  item.  The  defect  of  the 
contrast  incentive  again  is  that  of  all  the  mechani- 
cal devices.  To  be  effective  it  must  be  reinforced 
by  an  interest  incentive,  or  else  it  fails  to  hold  the 
attention  it  has  gained  by  sheer  force. 


PMMMt&ANDIB0N<9 

I>N(tRAVXRS 

DESIGNERS 
EIECTROTYPERS 


Advertising  Plated  Our 
Specialty 

10  O  NORTH  FIFTH  AVENUE 

C/\lCAGO 


White  on  Black 

The  writer  has  frequently  been  asked  why  black 
on  white  attracts  more  attention  than  white  on 
black.  The  contrast  is  apparently  the  same  here, 
and  the  principle  of  irradiation  would  lead  us  to 
expect  just  the  opposite  result.     The  reason  is 

77 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

probably  that  we  habitually  associate  dark 
spaces  with  objects  and  light  spaces  with  back- 
ground— with  air,  opening,  sky,  water,  etc.  It  is 
always  the  positive,  active  features  of  our  envir- 
onment, the  objects,  to  which  we  give  special  no- 
tice. Backgrounds  have  no  particular  importance 
except  as  they  set  off  objects.  So  when  black  let- 
ters are  seen  on  white  the  letters  attract  atten- 
tion. But  when  white  letters  appear  on  black, 
they  seem  to  be  merely  holes  in  the  object,  which 
is  now  the  dark  part.  Hence  we  do  not  attend  to 
the  form,  etc.,  of  the  letters.  So  far  as  acuity  and 
legibility  go  there  is  no  difference  between  the 
two  arrangements. 

5.      ISOLATION 

Closely  allied  to  contrast  is  another  factor 
— the  absence  of  counter  attraction.  Conscious- 
ness is  never  empty.  If  it  were  it  would  not  be 
consciousness.  This  means  that  we  must  attend 
to  something,  and,  for  the  most  part,  to  some- 
thing in  the  outside  world.  In  the  absence  of 
counter  attraction  consciousness  fixates  the  one 
thing  in  the  field.  The  value  of  monopolizing  the 
whole  space,  of  eliminating  competing  appeals  by 
employing  plenty  of  white  space,  etc.,  has  its  basis 

78 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

here.  Little  more  need  be  said.  The  difficulties 
with  this  device  are:  (1)  that  we  quickly  become 
adapted  to  its  artificial  character,  (2)  that  there 


Attention  Value  of  Isolation 


is  always  more  than  one  field  open  to  conscious- 
ness, and  it  is  necessary  to  make  the  page,  wall, 
side  of  the  street,  etc.,  have  some  intrinsic  inter- 
est before  the  absence  of  counter  attraction  in 
that  particular  field  has  a  chance  to  work. 

79 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 


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A  Tempting 
Dessert  Delicacy 

to  serve  in  place  of  pies  or  pastry^  and  at 
luncheons  or  afternoon  teas. 

Nabisco  Sugar  Wafers  make  instant 
appeal  to  everybody.    ^ 

They  have  a  charm  wholly  their  own, 
and  are  exquisitely  superior  to  any  other 
confection,  delicacy  ever  produced. 

fit  ten  cent  tins. 

■    Also  in  twenty-five  cent  tins 

Chocolate  Tokens— NABisco-hke 

goodness  enclosed  in  a  shell  of  rich  chocolate. 


Absence  of  Counter  Attraction 


6.      POSITION 

The  final  mechanical  device  is  that  of  posi- 
tion. Because  of  certain  habitual  fixation  tenden- 
cies of  the  eyes  in  reading  and  observing,  certain 
positions  on  a  printed  page,  a  bulletin  board,  etc., 
have  greater  attention  value  than  others.  Thus,  in 

80 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

Gale's  experiments  the  left  side  of  the  page  was 
found  to  have  greater  attention  value  than  the 
right.  This  result  would  follow  from  the  tendency 
to  begin  on  the  left  and  read  to  the  right,  so  that  in 
a  quick  exposure  such  as  Gale  gave  the  left  side 
would  have  the  advantage,  and  especially  so  since 
he  studied  the  page  when  it  was  taken  out  of  the 
magazine  and  presented  as  a  flat  surface.  Starch 
experimented  with  nonsense  syllables  placed  in 
different  positions  in  a  pamphlet  of  twelve 
pages.  On  the  third  and  eighth  pages  the  same 
syllable  occurred.  Fifty  people  looked  through 
the  pamphlet  and  then  wrote  out  all  the  syllables 
remembered.  Of  those  occurring  on  the  left  side 
of  the  page  44  per  cent,  were  recalled,  while  56 
per  cent,  of  those  on  the  right  were  recalled.  This 
contradicts  Gale's  results. 

The  experiments  are  complicated  by  the  fact 
that  in  reading  the  eye  has  a  second  tendency  to 
fixate  the  object  in  each  hand — the  part  of  the 
page  held  at  normal  reading  distance.  This  will 
be  in  magazines,  and  especially  in  newspapers, 
the  two  outside  columns,  one  of  which  is  on  the 
right,  the  other  on  the  left.  Starch's  experiments 
further  erred  in  using  such  unusual  and  artificial 
things  as  nonsense  syllables  which  vary  greatly 
among    themselves    in    attention    and    memory 

81 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

value.  From  general  knowledge  of  the  laws  of 
reading  and  eye  movement,  however,  I  will  ven- 
ture to  prophesy  that  in  flat  surfaces  the  left  side 
will  be  found  to  be  most  favorable,  in  newspaper 
pages  the  outside  spaces,  that  is,  the  left  on  the 
left-hand  pages  and  the  right  on  the  right-hand 
pages,  while  on  magazine  pages  there  will  be  lit- 
tle difference  found. 

A  second  question  relating  to  position  concerns 
the  relative  value  of  the  top  and  bottom  of  the 
page.  Psychologically  there  are  two  factors  that 
work  here: 

(1)  We  tend  to  find  meaning  in  the  top  of 
things,  the  faces  of  our  fellow  men,  the  branches 
of  trees,  etc.  We  begin  to  read  at  the  top  of 
the  page.  Further,  in  reading,  experiments  show 
that  the  upper  part  of  the  printed  letters  is 
more  significant  than  the  lower  part  and  that  the 
eye  does  not  run  along  the  middle  of  a  printed  or 
written  line  but  rather  along  a  line  between  the 
middle  of  the  small  letters  and  the  tops  of  the 
high  ones,  that  is,  a  line  somewhat  above  the  cen- 
ter. 

(2)  In  fixating  a  general  object,  especially  a 
work  of  art,  a  picture,  wall,  etc.,  there  is  a  con- 
stant tendency  to  fixate  the  center.    This  gives  us 

82 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

the  best  view  of  the  object  as  a  whole  and  also 
enables  us  to  perceive  its  unitary  structure,  bal- 
ance, proportion,  etc. 

Here  are,  then,  two  tendencies.  The  result  is  a 
compromise,  in  which  the  space  between  top  and 
center  has  greatest  advantage.  Experiment  con- 
firms this  result.  Thus,  in  Starch's  tests,  the 
value  of  the  upper  half  of  pages  was  61  per  cent., 
as  against  39  per  cent,  for  the  lower  half,  when 
the  page  was  divided  into  quarters.  When  it  was 
divided  only  into  halves  the  same  law  held,  the 
values  being,  upper  half  54  per  cent.,  lower  half 
46  per  cent.  Gale,  studying  flat  surfaces,  divided 
into  horizontal  quarters,  found  that  the  quarter 
just  above  the  middle  was  strongest,  and  the  bot- 
tom weakest. 

Finally,  in  this  problem  of  position  there  is  the 
question  of  preferred  pages.  The  fact  of  pre- 
ferred pages  is  recognized  by  magazine  rates,  but 
the  policies  here  are  quite  discordant,  some  mak- 
ing great  and  some  relatively  small  extra  charge 
for  preferred  positions.  Starch  studied  this  prob- 
lem using  nonsense  syllables  with  his  twelve-page 
pamphlet.    He  found  the  following  results : 

DATA 

Total  number  recalled 261 

Average  number  on  outside  cover  recalled 34 

Average  number  on  inside  cover  recalled 26 

Average  number  on  other  pages  recalled 17 

83 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

This  indicates  the  outer  cover  to  be  twice  as  ef- 
fective, and  the  inside  cover  to  be  half  again  as 
effective  as  the  ordinary  inside  pages. 

Using  real  advertisements  instead  of  the  syl- 
lables, the  results  were:  preferred  positions, 
average  19.2  times ;  non-preferred  positions,  aver- 
age 6.5  times.  But  these  figures  are  highly  unre- 
liable because  the  advertisements  themselves  dif- 
fer greatly  in  attention  value,  familiarity  and  in- 
terest. Furthermore,  all  the  inside  pages  are 
lumped  together,  with  no  attempt  to  discriminate 
between,  say,  page  3  and  page  7,  or  between  back 
half  and  front  half  of  the  pamphlet.  Moreover, 
the  value  of  other  preferred  pages,  such  as  those 
next  to  the  reading  matter,  is  not  considered. 

The  following  figures  resulted  from  a  prelim- 
inary experiment  performed  by  one  of  my  stu- 
dents. A  magazine  containing  10  pages  of  adver- 
tising matter  in  the  front  section  and  10  in  the 
back  section  was  chosen.  A  set  of  trade  marks 
(geometrical  forms  of  solid  black  and  of  approxi- 
mately the  same  area)  was  affixed,  one  to  the  cen- 
ter of  each  of  these  pages.  The  relative  attention 
value  of  each  of  these  forms,  when  all  were  seen 
under  the  same  conditions,  was  determined  by  a 
careful  experiment  with  25  people.  After  this 
had  been  done  it  was  possible  to  allow  for  the  dif- 

84 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

ferences  in  attention  value,  clue  not  to  the  page  it- 
self, but  to  the  form  which  it  happened  to  carry. 
Thus,  if  the  form  on  page  3  was  found  to  have 
2.5  times  the  attention  value  of  the  form  on  page 
7,  the  results  from  page  7,  when  multiplied  by 
2.5,  might  be  supposed  to  be  absolutely  compara- 
ble with  the  results  from  page  3,  and  any  differ- 
ence between  the  two,  after  this  compensation 
had  been  made,  would  reflect  nothing  but  the  rela- 
tive attention  value  of  the  two  pages  themselves. 
The  experiment  thus  attempted  to  conform  to  the 
first  requirement  of  a  scientific  experiment  (curi- 
ously neglected  in  reported  tests  of  advertising 
values),  namely,  that  the  only  variable  factor  be 
that  which  is  being  specifically  investigated,  or 
that,  if  other  factors  vary,  this  variation  be  also 
measured  and  reckoned  with  in  the  valuation  of 
the  final  returns.  The  set  of  trade  marks,  with 
their  relative  attention  value,  will  appear  in  an- 
other connection. 

A  group  of  25  subjects  was  then  allowed  to 
look  through  the  magazine  for  a  limited  time, 
without  being  told  the  purpose  of  the  experiment. 
Each  subject  took  the  magazine  from  a  shelf  of 
books,  and  looked  through  it  in  his  own  way.  He 
was  later  presented  with  a  complete  set  of  50 
geometrical  forms  and  requested  to  pick  out  the 

85 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

20  forms  that  he  had  previously  seen  in  the  maga- 
zine. 

The  results  were  then  transformed  into  com- 
parable quantities,  in  the  manner  just  described, 
and  in  this  way  the  relative  attention  value  of  the 
various  pages,  when  the  magazine  was  handled  in 
this  way,  was  determined.  The  following  table 
resulted : 

TABLE   V 


Front  Section 

Value  in 
Per  Cent. 

Back  Section 

Value  in 
Per  Cent. 

Page 

1 

34.4 
44.2 
38.0 
43.9 
39.1 
69.0 

Page 

11 

48.6 

2  or  3 

4  or  5 

6  or  7 

8  or  9 

10 

12  or  13 

14  or  15 

16  or  17 

18  or  19 

20 

21.5 
31.5 
30.4 
32.4 
20.0 

Average  of  front  section,  43 . 4 ;  average  of  back  section,  30.0. 

Several  facts  are  clearly  evident  here: 

1.  The  value  of  the  front  section  is  almost 
50  per  cent,  better  than  that  of  the  back 
section. 

2.  The  best  page  of  all  is  the  page  next  to  the 
reading  matter  in  front  (page  10,  69  per 
cent.).  The  next  best  is  the  page  next  to 
the  reading  matter  behind  (page  11,  48.6 
per  cent.). 

86 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

3.  The  front  cover  (page  1)  and  the  back 
cover  (page  20)  turn  out  to  be  the  poorest 
pages  of  the  whole  twenty. 

4.  Aside  from  the  front  cover  and  the  page 
next  the  reading  matter,  all  the  front 
pages  are  of  about  equal  value,  when  the 
section  is  limited  to  10  pages. 

5.  Aside  from  the  back  cover  and  the  page 
next  to  the  reading  matter,  all  the  back 
pages  are  of  about  equal  value. 

Here  are  a  number  of  experimental  facts  that 
are  in  striking  contrast  with  the  common  theories 
of  preferred  position.  To  be  sure,  the  results  can- 
not, without  further  verification,  be  transferred 
to  conditions  other  than  those  in  which  the  ex- 
periment was  performed.  But  other  tests  seem 
to  indicate  that  all  the  rules  which  hold  in  this 
experiment  also  hold  when  the  sections  are  much 
larger,  when  actual  advertisements  are  consid- 
ered instead  of  geometrical  forms,  and  when  the 
magazine  is  taken  home  and  read  in  the  ordinary 
way. 

The  following  curves  give  the  results  of  an 
elaborate  experiment  performed  by  Dr.  Strong, 
for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  relative  value 
of  preferred  pages  in  a  larger  magazine  than  the 

87 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 


small  one  employed  in  the  case  of  the  experiments 
I  have  just  described.  This  experiment  com 
formed  even  more  closely  to  the  conditions  of 
actual  reading  habits.  The  procedure  is  described 


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Results  of  One  of  Dr.  Strong's  Tests  on  Attention  Value 
of  Different  Advertising  Pages  in  Everybody's  Magazine. 
The  figures  at  the  left  represent  the  percentage  of  137  women 
who  noticed  the  advertisement  in  the  various  pages.  The  fig- 
ures across  the  bottom  indicate  the  number  of  the  page  in  the 
advertising  sections.  The  advertisements  on  the  covers  were 
not  considered.  For  example,  the  advertisement  on  the  page 
opposite  the  second  cover  was  noticed  by  101/4%  of  the  women 
tested,  the  advertisement  on  the  page  just  preceding  reading 
matter  by  61/4%  of  the  women,  the  advertisement  on  the  page 
just  after  reading  matter  by  9%%  of  the  women,  and  the 
advertisement  on  the  last  page  opposite  the  third  cover  by 
7%  of  the  women.  Contrasted  with  these  preferred  pages  we 
find  but  2%%  of  the  women  noticing  advertisements  in  the 
neighborhood  of  page  88 — the  center  of  the  back  advertising 
section. 

by  Strong  as  follows:  "A  professor  assigned  his 
class  as  necessary  reading  an  article  in  the  Sep- 
tember issue  of  Everybody's  Magazine.  Each 
member  of  the  class  was  supplied  with  a  copy  of 

88 


MECHANICAL    INCENTIVES 

the  magazine,  and  was  allowed  to  keep  it  one 
week,  after  which  time  it  was  to  be  returned  to 
the  class  room.  Each  person  was  then  given  an 
envelope  containing  all  the  full-page  advertise- 
ments that  had  appeared  in  the  issue  and  a  good 
number  of  others  from  another  issue.  They  were 
requested  to  look  through  these  and  select  those 
they  remembered  as  having  been  in  the  magazine. 
One  hundred  and  thirty-seven  people  were  thus 
tested,  ranging  in  age  from  18  to  50.  A  number 
were  married,  and  all  were  in  the  Domestic  Sci- 
ence Department  of  Teachers  College,  and  espe- 
cially interested  in  problems  of  the  household. 
Many  are  right  now  the  buyers  for  homes,  and 
most  of  the  remainder  are  qualifying  to  become 
so  in  the  near  future."  These  results  are  seen  to 
confirm  all  the  generalizations  based  on  the  ear- 
lier experiment,  except  that,  because  of  the  length 
of  time  which  the  magazine  was  used,  the  cover 
pages  came  to  have  higher  value  than  was  ac- 
corded them  in  the  earlier  tests. 

This  completes  our  study  of  the  mechanical  in- 
centives, their  characteristics,  laws,  and  relative 
values.  In  general  we  may  say  that  these  in- 
centives are  crude  and  unsatisfactory.  After  hav- 
ing discussed  the  interest  incentives  in  a  similar 
way,  I  shall  give  an  account  of  an  interesting 

89 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

demonstration  and  proof  of  the  inferior  value  of 
the  mechanical  group.  The  essential  thing  about 
a  successful  appeal  is  that  it  shall  be  able  to  sus- 
tain the  attention  it  has  once  caught,  and  the  me- 
chanical incentives  in  themselves  fail  to  do  this. 
Only  attention  based  on  interest  is  likely  to  be 
held  long  enough  for  the  suggested  idea  to  realize 
itself  in  action.  The  interest  incentives,  then,  are 
the  effective  ones.  A  study  of  these  factors  we 
are  to  take  up  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTEE  VI 

INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

Interest  incentives  fall  under  the  headings  of 
eight  chief  principles.  These  are  the  most  effec- 
tive devices  for  catching  the  attention  in  a  per- 
manent way.  Their  chief  strength  is  derived 
from  the  fact  that  the  feeling  of  interest,  which  is 
essential  to  sustained  attention,  is  the  very  basis 
of  their  initial  attraction  value.  These  eight  in- 
centives are  the  appeal  through: 

1.  Novelty:  bizarre  effects,  unusual  devices 
and  statements. 

2.  Color:   brightness,  tone  and  harmony. 

3.  Illustration:    cuts',  photographs,  sketches. 

4.  Action:  suggested  activity  on  the  part  of 
persons  or  things. 

5.  The  comic :  pictorial  and  verbal  humor. 

6.  Feeling    tone:    pleasantness,    excitement, 
strain  and  their  opposites. 

7.  Instinctive  response :  any  appeal  to  a  fun- 
damental instinct. 

91 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

8.  Effective    conceptions :     appeal   to    estab- 
lished habits  and  ideals. 


1.       NOVELTY 

The  basis  of  the  value  of  novelty  as  an  in- 
centive is  twofold.  Recall  the  extreme  impor- 
tance, in  the  lives  of  our  ancestors  and  in  our 
own  experience,  of  unusual  objects,  new  situa- 
tions, unaccustomed  stimuli.  The  organism  is 
perfectly  adapted  to  familiar  objects,  but  strange 
ones  can  only  set  up  disturbed  or  random  re- 
sponses, and  hence  cause  the  feeling  of  shock.  We 
are  startled  by  the  novel.  It  is  full  of  interest  to 
us  both  on  account  of  the  danger  it  may  contain 
and  on  account  of  the  good  it  may  afford.  Hence 
we  always  attend  to  it  closely  when  we  discover 
it.  This  incentive  is  closelv  related  to  the  instinct 
of  curiosity.  Curiosity  is  merely  the  name  for 
our  interest  in  the  unknown  or  unfamiliar.  Throw 
a  strange  object  into  the  field  and  the  horses  and 
cattle  will  circle  around  it,  sniffing,  poking  and 
snorting  until  they  seem  to  have  discovered  all 
the  possible  sources  of  activity  to  be  anticipated 
from  the  object.  If  the  object  shows  no  new 
traits,  but  behaves  just  as  the  old  familiar  ob- 
jects in  the  pasture,  the  cattle  soon  scatter  away 

92 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

and  are  hereafter  unconcerned  about  it.    But  if  it 
shows  any  new  or  unwonted  characteristics,  the 


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COLtS       PHILLIPS 


Novelty  as  an  Effective  Attention  Device.  This  also  illus- 
trates an  important  principle  of  Perception,  viz.,  that  one 
''sees"  not  so  much  what  the  sense  organ  affords  but  rather 
what  the  present  stimulus  has  been  learned  to  mean.  Sensa- 
tion is  supplemented  by  perception.  In  the  above  picture  only 
parts  of  the  objects  are  given  in  sensation,  but  the  objects  are 
nevertheless  perceived  as  wholes. 

animals  are  interested  in  it  for  days  and  may  be 
observed  constantly  examining  it.  The  same  is 
true  of  a  child  with  a  new  toy. 

Herein  lies  the  strong  attention  value  of  all  de- 
vices designed  to  arouse  curiosity — bizarre  fig- 
ures, cuts,  shapes,  grotesque  faces,  novel  forms 
and  arrangements,  new  type  faces,  curious  spell- 

93 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

ing,  unusual  location  or  positions,  catchy  names, 
trade  marks,  unfamiliar  media,  such  as  kites,  sky- 
rockets, balloons,  curious  street  walkers,  window- 
exhibitions,  prize  packages,  lotteries,  prizes,  puz- 
zles, contests,  continued  stories,  etc.     Churches 


In  our  $35.  overcoat  every 
penny  is  a  wise  invest- 
ment. 

Every  dollar  of  the  $35. 
will  work  for  your  benefit. 

If  you're  tired  of  conven- 
tional styles  and  colors  come 
and  see  these  quaint  patterns 
and  tones— shape  and  cut 
equally  new. 

For  the  conservative  cus- 
tomer—everything dignified. 

Prices  from  $15  to  $40. 

New  Neckwear  to  har- 
monize with  the  color  of  the 
overcoat. 


Of  the  three  leading  New  York 
and  London  overcoats  for  the 
Fall  this  cut  gives  a  general  idea-- 
to  get  the  exact  idea  come  in 
and  try  'em  on. 

Certainly  some  of  these  coats 
are  extreme—very  ultra  radical-- 
plus,  and  let  it  go  at  that. 

They  are  only  {or  those  who 
appreciate  the  very  newest 
fashion. 

For  the  man  of  quiet  taste 
everything  in  correct  conserva- 
tive lines. 

Overcoats  $--  to  $— 

Suits  $—  to  $-- 

Our  New  York  Resident  Buyer 
sent  in  a  few  new  and  odd  Persian 
designs  in  neckwear. 


The  Conventional 


have  frequently  carried  on  advertising  campaigns 
based  on  the  novelty  incentive,  introducing  un- 
heard-of specialties  and  stunts  into  the  service. 
Newspapers,  politicians,  purveyors  of  foodstuffs, 
publishers,  clothiers,  dealers  in  every  commodity 
except  perhaps  large  staple  products,  machinery, 

94 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

etc.,  use  this  incentive  to  advantage.  The  element 
of  novelty  attracts  the  attention  initially,  and,  if 
the  thing  is  sufficiently  curious,  the  observer  is 
likely, to  keep  his  attention  fixed  until  the  adver- 
tisement has  been  thoroughly  digested. 


EXTREMES   .MEET. 

"It's  only  en  ertretne  type  of  people 
u-no  tarry  a  lathton  to  its  exlrenu 
Umif  " 

This  winter  we've  carried 
out  the  ideas  expressed  by 
the"Clothierand  Furnisher" 

"Dignified  clothing  (uf  Cn  render 
tative  tinei  unll  be  the  itUctton  in 
demcimi  ]or  winter 

Our  suits  and  overcoats 
while  embodying  all  the 
novel  features  in  cut  and 
fabric  are  in  the  com- 
mon-sense, becoming,  fash- 
ionable class. 

Suite  $15  to  $40. 

Overcoats  $15.  to  $45. 


It's  time  to  turn  those 
negligee  shirts  out  to  grass. 

October  is  the  time  for  the 
stiff  bosom  shirt  to  be  firm 
in  its  demands  on  your  atten- 
tion. We  have  'em  in  short 
bosoms,  so  now  all  the  old 
discomforts  are  avoided. 
Try  'em. 

Prices. — 

Unique  designs  in  new 
fall  neckwear. 

Special  display  now. 


The  Novel 


If  possible,  the  novelty  should  be  intrinsic,  not 
simply  obtruded  as  an  attention  device.  In  the 
illustrations  given,  this  latter  situation  is  very 
likely  to  be  the  case.  A  good  example  of  effective 
and  intrinsic  novelty  is  the  assertion  made  by  the 
advertisements  of  3-in-l  Oil:     "Men  shave  with 

95 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

it."  The  Brownies,  Gold  Dust  Twins,  Sunny  Jim, 
the  Herpicide  cards,  etc.,  may  be  cited  as  attempts 
to  employ  the  novelty  device  for  purposes  of  at- 
tention. 

The  chief  danger  in  using  the  novelty  incentive 
is,  of  course,  that  of  emphasizing  the  novelty 
rather  than  the  product. 

2.      COLOR 

The  use  of  color  for  advertising  purposes  de- 
pends chiefly  on  the  strong  and  lasting  inter- 
est that  all  living  beings  have  in  color.  The 
lower  animals  develop  gorgeous  plumage  dur- 
ing the  mating  season,  when  the  attention  re- 
ceived is  a  chief  item  in  the  life  of  an  individual. 
The  savage  will  barter  his  weapons  and  choice 
possessions  for  bright  red  blankets  or  a  chain  of 
tinted  beads.  The  most  civilized  of  us  loves  to 
adorn  himself  with  modulated  hues  and  harmoni- 
ous color  schemes.  Moreover,  colors  differ 
greatly  in  their  influence.  Far  down  in  the  scale 
of  living  things  can  be  seen  color  preferences 
more  or  less  physiological  in  kind.  Microscopic 
animals  are  attracted  by  some  colors,  repelled  by 
others.  Bulls  and  frogs,  with  their  well-known 
reaction  to  reds,  illustrate  the  point. 

The  red-yellow  end  of  the  spectrum,  generally 

96 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

speaking,  is  warm  and  active.  It  is  stimulating, 
exciting,  sometimes  irritating.  The  green-blue 
end,  on  the  other  hand,  is  cold  and  passive.  Its 
action  is  in  general  depressing,  quieting.  To 
"have  the  blues"  is  a  popular  expression  suggest- 


Curves  Showing  Visual  Acuity  with  Lights  of  Different 
Colors.  These  curves  are  taken  from  an  important  study  of 
"Visual  Acuity  with  Lights  of  Different  Colors  and  Intensi- 
ties," by  Dr.  D.  Edgar  Rice,  of  the  Department  of  Science 
and  Technology  of  Pratt  Institute.  Dr.  Rice  remarks,  "As  to 
the  effect  of  different  colors  upon  acuity  ...  it  is  quite 
clear  that  whatever  differences  exist  are  in  favor  of  the  colors 
at  the  red  end  of  the  spectrum.  .  .  .  The  red  and  the  white 
illuminations  yield  approximately  equal  acuity,  while  both  are 
considerably  higher  than  the  green.  The  acuity  with  the  blue 
illumination  is  the  lowest." 

ing  this  relation.  This  is, more  than  a  question  of 
imagination  and  sentiment.  It  is  a  demonstrable 
physiological  and  psychological  fact  that  the  red 
end  is  dynamogenic  in  its  influence,  that  is,  that 
it  increases  and  reinforces  activities  going  on  in 
the  system,  while  the  blue  end  inhibits.  The  ac- 
companying diagram  gives  a  set  of  curves  show- 
ing the  relative  legibility  of  type  under  the  same 

97 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

intensity  of  illumination  by  different  colors.  Col- 
ors, then,  if  used  discreetly  or  harmoniously,  at- 
tract the  eye,  and,  what  is  equally  important,  hold 
it.  We  do  not  tire  of  agreeable  color  combina- 
tions. We  revel  in  them,  contemplate  them  again 
and  again,  look  for  them  on  other  occasions  and 
point  them  out  to  our  friends.  But  the  colors 
must  be  properly  employed  or  they  may  not  only 
fail  to  hold  the  eye,  but  may  actually  repel  it. 

A  significant  fact  is  that  of  preferred  colors. 
Elaborate  statistical  studies  on  men  and  women 
students  in  New  York,  Minnesota,  and  England 
disclose  certain  interesting  differences  in  color 
preference.  There  is,  of  course,  a  considerable 
range  of  individual  differences,  and  the  results 
would  be  greatly  modified  by  changes  in  the  use  to 
which  the  color  might  be  put.  Comparison  of  the 
different  investigations  is  so  interesting  that  I 
give  here  a  summary,  prepared  by  one  of  my  stu- 
dents, of  the  principal  results  of  several  of  them. 

1.  Grant  Allen  studied  the  color  preferences 
shown  by  savages,  securing  the  assistance 
of  missionaries  in  various  lands.  He  gives 
the  following  order  as  the  result  of  these 
inquiries : 

98 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

1.  Eed 

2.  Yellow 

3.  Orange 

4.  Blue 

5.  Green 

2.  Baldwin  studied  the  color  preferences 
shown  by  a  young  baby,  on  the  basis  of  the 
color  reached  for  when  variously  colored 
papers  were  placed  before  it.  He  gives 
the  following  order  of  preferences : 

1.  Red 

2.  Blue 

3.  "White 

4.  Green 

5.  Brown 

3c  Winch  investigated  color  preferences  of 
2,000  school  children  in  London,  with  the 
following  order  resulting,  for  both  boys 
and  girls : 

1.  Blue 

2.  Red 

3.  Yellow,    falling    lower    with    in- 
creased age  and  intelligence 

4.  Green,    rising    higher    with    in- 
creased age  and  intelligence 

99 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

5.  White 

6.  Black 

4.  Gordon,  with  only  a  few  subjects,  studied 
the  influence  of  background,  securing  the 
following  orders : 

On  Black  On  White 

1.  Red  1.  Blue 

2.  Yellow  2.  Red 

3.  Green  3.  Green 

4.  Blue  4.  Yellow 

5.  Studies  of  students  in  Vassar  College 
yield  the  following  order  of  preference : 

1.  Blue 

2.  Red 

3.  Green 

4.  Yellow  and  Orange 

6.  Wissler,  from  his  study  of  Columbia  men 
and  women  students,  deduces  the  following 
table.  His  results  show  that  yellow  was 
preferred  more  by  the  younger  students 
than  by  the  older.  With  age,  he  concludes, 
the  preferred  color  passes  on  down  toward 
the  violet  end  of  the  spectrum.  Combin- 
ing this  result  with  those  shown  in  his 
table,  we  might  conclude  that,  in  so  far  as 

100 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 


*    ,  -   • 


the  data  are  reliable,  the  younger  the  per- 
son the  nearer  the  red  end  of  the  spectrum 
would  be  his  or  her  favorite  color,  and 
also  that  children  and  women  would  prefer 
reds,  while  men  and  older  women  would 
show  greater  fondness  for  blues. 

TABLE    VI 

(Wissler's  Table) 


Percentage 

Percentage 

Percentage 

Percentage 

Color 

of  Men 

of  Men 

of  Women 

of  Women 

Who 

Who 

Who 

Who 

Like  It 

Dislike  It 

Like  It 

Dislike  It 

Red 

22 

7 

42 

8 

Orange .... 

5 

25 

8 

SI 

Yellow .... 

2 

32 

5 

8 

Green 

7 

15 

9 

21 

Blue 

42 

12 

9 

23 

Violet 

19 

8 

19 

9 

White 

3 

1 

8 

0 

Taking  these  studies  as  a  group,  the  following 
points  are  to  be  noted.  The  reds  and  blues  stand 
high  for  educated  people,  the  orange  and  yellow 
standing  low.  For  children  and  savages  just  the 
reverse  is  the  case.  Yellow  falls  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  race  and  also  in  the  development  of 
the  individual.  No  very  striking  sex  differences 
for  order  are  shown,  but  the  figures  show  consid- 
erable differences  for  amount.     It  is  a  further 

101 


PMNfeSXJ*tES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

general  principle  that  the  most  saturated  colors 
are  preferred. 

Besides  the  strong  attention  value  of  colors, 
there  are  certain  other  advantages  in  its  use 
which  might  as  well  be  briefly  enumerated  while 
we  are  on  the  topic. 

1.  The  use  of  color  enables  the  adequate  repre- 
sentation of  the  texture,  quality,  fabric,  grain, 
pattern  and  hue  of  the  article  with  less  strain  on 
the  imagination. 

2.  It  conveys  a  precise  idea — yellow  as  a  word 
may  mean  anything  between  red  and  blue,  in- 
numerable shades  and  tints  of  orange,  yellow  and 
yellowish  green. 

3.  It  enables  the  recognition  of  packages  and 
articles  much  better  than  does  a  simple  name  or 
trade  mark.  The  National  Biscuit  Company  pack- 
ages are  good  illustrations  of  this  fact. 

The  value  of  color  is  illustrated  by  comparative 
tests  carried  on  by  mail-order  houses  in  Chicago. 
These  tests  show  that  a  cut  in  color  often  sells  as 
high  as  15  times  as  much  as  does  a  plain  black 
and  white  cut  of  the  same  article.  These  houses 
are  using  more  and  more  color  in  their  catalogues 
in  spite  of  the  extra  cost. 

Another  important  fact  about  color  which  also 
greatly  enhances  its  attention  value  is  that  a  sign 

102 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

or  color  scheme  which  is  really  flat  may  be  made 
to  look  solid,  to  have  depth,  to  be  extended  in 
three  dimensions  instead  of  two,  by  the  proper 
use  of  color. 

Color  and  third  dimension. — The  third  dimen- 
sion can  be  suggested  without  the  aid  of  perspec- 
tive drawing,  by  simple  color  quality  differences, 
in  two  ways. 

1.  By  appropriate  selection  of  brightness 
values.  Brightness  is  easily  taken  to  mean  near- 
ness, while  relative  dullness  suggests  distance. 
When,  in  the  laboratory,  the  illumination  of  ob- 
jects is  increased  or  diminished,  observers  fre- 
quently suppose  the  object  to  be  approaching  or 
receding,  although  it  has  remained  stationary 
throughout. 

2.  But  the  most  important,  practical  and  strik- 
ing result  is  that  secured  by  a  proper  selection 
of  differences  in  hues.  The  red,  warm  end  of  the 
spectrum  seems  closer  to  us  than  the  blue  end 
when  both  really  are  located  at  the  same  distance. 
In  fact,  the  spectral  series  shows  an  increasing 
suggestion  of  distance  as  we  go  from  red  and 
orange  through  yellow  and  green  to  blue  and  vio- 
let. 

The  ether  waves  causing  the  different  colors 
are  refracted  by  the  eye  in  different  degrees.  Red 

103 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 


is  bent  least  of  all,  yellow  a  little  more,  green  still 
more,  and  blue  most  of  all.  This  is  the  reason 
that  a  prism  can  break  up  a  beam  of  white  light 
into  the  colors  of  the  rainbow.  The  waves  pro- 
ducing the  different  hues  emerge  from  the  prism 
at  different  angles,  so  that  the  separate  colors 
can  be  thrown  upon  a  screen  or  upon  the  retina 
in  the  form  known  as  the  spectrum. 

The  following  figure  represents  this  fact: 

x 


White 
Light 


Lens 


Chromatic  Aberration  in  the  Human  Eye.  By  way  of  explain- 
ing why  blue  and  green  objects  seem  farther  away  than  do  red 
and  yellow  objects.  This  principle  can  be  used  to  advantage 
in  constructing  electric  signs.  Because  of  their  apparent  near- 
ness the  red  and  yellow  lights  stand  out  more  prominently  than 
the  green  and  blue  lights.     (See  text  for  explanation.) 

Suppose,  now,  that  the  lens  in  the  eye  is  ad- 
justed so  that  the  blue  rays  come  to  a  focus  on 
the  retina  at  B  and,  therefore,  give  a  clear  image 
of  the  object  from  which  they  come.  The  red 
rays  do  not  focus  until  R,  which  is  some  distance 
behind  the  retina.  In  order  to  get  a  clear  picture 
of  the  red  object,  the  lens  must  bulge  out,  becom- 

104 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

ing  more  convex,  hence  bending  each  ray  of  light 
correspondingly  more  so  that  the  red  rays  focus 
sooner  than  before,  until,  in  fact,  they  meet  at  X 
on  the  retina. 

But  we  also  bulge  out  this  lens  in  order  to  get 
a  clear  image  of  a  near  object  when  we  have  been 
looking  at  a  more  distant  one.  In  this  way  bulg- 
ing the  lens  comes  to  mean  for  us  a  near  object. 
And  when  we  bulge  the  lens  for  a  clear  image  of 
the  red  rays  we  naturally  infer  their  source 
to  be  nearer.  And,  since  we  flatten  the  lens  both 
for  a  clear  picture  of  a  distant  object  and  for  a 
sharp  image  from  the  blue  rays,  we  suppose  the 
blue  object  to  be  far  away;  we  confuse  blueness 
with  distance. 

We  shall  later  see  the  appropriateness  of  blue 
for  mural  decorations  when  the  suggestion  of  dis- 
tance is  desirable.  The  value  of  this  principle  is 
demonstrated  in  many  electric  light  signs  on 
our  streets,  though  the  principle  is  often  disre- 
garded with  the  result  that  what  should  seem  near 
seems  distant  and  vice  versa.  We  shall  take  up 
the  topic  of  color  more  fully  when  we  consider  the 
factors  which  make  for  sustained  attention,  and 
shall  there  discuss  the  effectiveness  of  different 
color  combinations.  It  is  sufficient  here  to  indi- 
cate the  high  initial  attention  value  of  color. 

105 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

3.       CUTS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS 

Closely  related  to  the  interest  in  colors  is  that 
in  pictures.  Pictures  were  the  first  means  of  writ- 
ten communication.  The  letters  of  our  alphabet 
can  be  traced  far  back  to  their  early  pictorial 
sources.  The  pictorial  impulse  is  a  universal  one 
and  no  art  has  been  further  developed  than  that 
of  pictorial  representation.  The  reasons  for  this 
strong  interest  are  many.     Chief  among  them  is 


*. 


r 


*»v 


n? 


Hill    IHlMMHMI    IIIiHiIIIHI 


Illustration  as  an  Attention  and  Interest  Device 


the  fact  that  pictures  so  often  afford  pleasing 
color  combinations.  Again,  two  of  the  things  that 
provoke  strongest  interest  are  personality  and  ac- 
tion. Next  to  a  human  being  nothing  is  fuller  of 
personality  than  a  picture — the  personality  of  the 

106 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

artist,  of  the  subject  represented,  associations 
called  up  in  the  mind  of  the  observer.  Besides, 
the  painter  takes  care  to  choose  for  his  subject  a 


33"  HAIR  TOISTIC 


.  Two  Sim,  50c-  and  $u» 


Preserves  and  Promotes  Hair  Growth 

Your  Money  Back it  It  Doesn't 


TWr  «■•'  (*;  DtaMlai  la  —rtj  4MO  Hm—  m*  tUm  <•  <IM  IWM  tutm  —* Cm*. 


The  Use  of  Illustration 


theme  that  has  an  intrinsic  interest.  Experiments 
show  this  pictorial  interest  to  be  stronger  with 
women  and  children  than  men.  As  the  race  has 
progressed,  its  means  of  communication  have  de- 
veloped in  abstract  directions,  quite  beyond  the 

107 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

pictorial  stage.  Men  who  have  been  most  active 
in  this  process  seem  to  have  lost  somewhat  of 
their  earlier  pictorial  interest. 

However,  experiments  go  to  show  that  there  are 
two  quite  distinct  classes  of  people  in  this  re- 
spect, an  unimaginative  or  imageless  class,  who 
require  pictures  for  comprehension  of  statements 
in  the  copy,  and  another  class  who  do  not.  Thus 
in  a  study  by  the  writer  of  a  group  of  expert  en- 
gineers with  respect  to  the  persuasiveness  of  dif- 
ferent sorts  of  machinery  advertisements,  the  men 
broke  into  two  sharply  defined  groups.  Mem- 
bers of  one  group  seemed  to  think  in  terms  of  vis- 
ual pictures.  They  did  not  need  an  illustration  of 
the  machine,  for  the  words  themselves  called  up 
vivid  mental  pictures  of  the  parts  and  the  advan- 
tages described.  To  these  men  the  presence  of  a 
cut  was  not  necessary — they  wanted  all  the  text 
they  could  get  and  placed  copy  advertisements 
higher  than  advertisements  with  illustrations. 
But  for  the  men  in  the  other  group  the  words 
called  up  no  mental  pictures.  They  seemed  to 
think  in  terms  of  sounds  and  movements  and  had 
to  have  a  complete  cut  of  the  machine  before  them 
before  they  could  perfectly  comprehend  its  ad- 
vantages. For  such  men  advertisements  with 
clear  cuts  were  more  persuasive  than  those  with 

108 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 


only  reading  matter.     See  Chapter  I  for  Table 
of  these  results. 

A  study  by  Strong  of  thirty  women  in  my  own 
laboratory  showed  the  same  two  groups.  This 
was  a  study  of  the  persuasiveness  of  ten  adver- 
tisements for  a  given  brand  of  soap.  In  the  fol- 
lowing table  the  two  groups  are  designated  as 
Group  A  and  Group  B.  The  figures  with  the  (  +  ) 
or  ( — )  indicate  whether  and  how  much  these  ad- 
vertisements were  placed  above  (  +  )  or  below 
( — )  the  average  by  the  members  of  the  two 
groups.  The  pictures  represented  various  combi- 
nations of  cuts  and  reading  matter,  and  it  will  be 
seen  that  one  group  (B)  consistently  places  cuts 
higher  than  the  average,  and  text  lower,  while 
the  other  group  (A)  just  reverses  this  relation, 
placing  text  higher. 


TABLE 

VII 

Character  and  Content  of  the  Appeals. 

O 

S-i 

o 

1 

All 
cut 

2 
All 

text 

3 

cut 

4 
text 

5 
cut 

6 
text 

7 

*A 

cut 

8 
text 

9 

cut 

10 
All 

text 

A 
B 

-4.2 
+3.1 

+2.6 
-2.9 

—0.2 
+0.1 

+0.2 
-0.2 

+0.7 
-0.3 

+0.4 
+  1.0 

+  1.3 
-1.1 

-1.0 
+0.9 

-1.0 

+0.5 

+  1.0 
-0.3 

Averages 

Group  A  places  text  advertisements  high +1.3 

Group  A  places  cut  advertisements  low — 1 . 0 

Group  B  places  cut  advertisements  high +1.0 

Group  B  places  text  advertisements  low —0 . 8 

109 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND   RESPONSE 


The  inference  is,  then,  that  the  ideal  appeal 
should  contain,  other  things  being  equal,  both  cut 
and  reading  matter.  By  this  arrangement  both 
the  visual  and  auditory-motor  types  of  imagina- 
tion will  be  provided  for. 

Since  illustrations  are  to  be  used,  the  question 
arises :  What  sort  of  a  picture  will  be  most  effec- 
tive? A  strictly  relevant  cut,  portraying  the  ar- 
ticle itself  and  designed  not  merely  to  attract  but 
to  inform  as  well — such  a  cut,  in  fact,  as  the  fol- 
lowing!   Or  should  the  cut  be  simply  a  means  of 


THE  COUSINS  SHOE 

FOR  WOMEN 

Particular   Women   choose  this  Shoe 
because  of  Us   elegance   of  line   and    pro- 
portion.   Besides,  they  know  it  is  the  best 
at   the"  price. 


A  Strictly  Relevant  Illustration 

catching  the  eye — a  cut  more  or  less  unrelated  to 

the   article   advertised — a  pretty  face,   a   funny 

scene,  etc.,  such  an  irrelevant  cut  for  example  as 

the  following? 

110 


THE  COUSINS  SHOE 

The  High  Plane  of  excellence  in  the 
Cousins  Shoe  is  the  logical  result  of  Sixty 
Years   of   the    most    careful   Snoeniakjng. 
The  Cousins   Shoe   embodies  the  Perfect. 
Blend  of  Style,  Comfort,  and  Durability. 


An  Irrelevant  Illustration 


Remotely  Relevant   Illustration 
111 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL    AND   RESPONSE 

And,  since  reading  matter  is  also  to  be  used, 
should  it  be  a  straightforward  declaration  of  sell- 
ing points — relevant  copy ! 


THE  PHEASANT 

Fine-  feathers  make  fine 
looking  birds.  It  isn"l  the 
outer  attractiveness  but  the 
inner  worth  that  has  made 
the  MOGUL  reputa- 
tion —  A  reputation  sus- 
tained by  thousands  of 
smokers  who  will  have 
nothing  cise. 

MOCUI — Cork    Tip—  Citfarottes 

Cain  a  mif/ily  lot  aj  irindt  Jai'J)) 


Irrelevant  Illustration 

Or  can  it  be  irrelevant,  merely  amusing,  strik- 
ing, or  calculated  to  connect  some  special  feeling 
with  the  article? 

An  interesting  study   of   this   question   is   re- 

112 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

ported  by  Gale.  These  four  kinds  of  material 
were  exposed  for  brief  intervals  on  five  different 
occasions  and  record  was  made  of  the  number  of 
times  each  item  was  observed.  The  results  are 
shown  by  a  set  of  curves,  which  show  the  ef- 
fect of  repetition  on  relevant  and  irrelevant 
words  and  cuts  so  far  as  attention  value  is  con- 
cerned. 

The  chief  results  may  be  summed  up  as  fol- 
lows: 

I.  With    respect    to    attention   value,    the 
items  stand  in  the  following  order: 

1.  Eelevant  words 

2.  Eelevant  and  irrelevant  cuts 

3.  Irrelevant  words 

II.  On  five  repetitions  of  the  same  appeals : 

1.  Eelevant  words  increase  in  value 

2.  All  cuts  decrease  in  value 

3.  Irrelevant  words  do  not  change 
III.  ^Vomen  are  more  attracted  by  cuts  and 

by  irrelevancy  than  are  men. 

This  pioneer  study  by  Gale  is  a  most  suggestive 
piece  of  work,  and  its  results  should  be  checked 
and  verified  or  tested  by  other  investigations  of 
the  same  kind.  Such  studies  are  now  in  progress 
in  several  laboratories. 

113 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

4.       SUGGESTED  ACTIVITY 

The  fourth  interest  incentive  grows  out  of 
the  preceding  one  quite  directly.  It  is  what  we 
may  call  interest  in  suggested  action.  Nothing  is 
more  interesting  than  a  person,  an  animal,  even  a 
machine,  in  action.  Much  of  the  strength  of  win- 
dow demonstrations,  street  vending,  etc.,  depends 
on  this  fact.  The  New  York  Herald  has  no  bet- 
ter advertisement  than  the  sight  of  its  presses, 
from  the  windows  on  Broadway.  A  barber  strop- 
ping his  razor,  a  gang  of  men  unloading  a  piano, 
a  mason  using  his  trowel,  a  lather  slapping  in  the 
nails,  anywhere,  even  in  politics  and  in  the  White 
House,  the  man  in  action  attracts  interest.  This 
is  not  the  same  factor  that  we  discerned  under  the 
head  of  movement.  This  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
pictures  and  representations  of  action  have  the 
same  attractiveness  as  does  the  action  itself.  Pic- 
tures of  people  doing  things  possess  an  interest 
far  greater  than  any  representation  of  inert  ob- 
jects or  the  most  vivid  word  pictures.  Note  the 
effectiveness  of  suggested  activity  as  shown  in 
the  quarter-page  Graphite  advertisement  in  Chap- 
ter V. 

A  very  curious  and  important  fact  in  this  con- 
nection is  that  to  suggest  action  pictorially,  the 

114 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

moving  object  must  always  be  caught  at  a  resting 
point,  otherwise  it  suggests  not  action  but  arrest. 
The  mistake  is  repeatedly  made  of  supposing  that 
to  suggest  motion,  let  us  say  of  a  horse  trotting, 
the  animal  should  be  represented  in  the  middle  of 
its  step.  Nothing  is  further  from  the  truth.  To 
suggest  action  effectively  the  foot  should  be 
caught  at  one  of  two  resting  points,  either  at  the 
initial  point,  before  beginning  the  movement,  or 
at  the  final  point,  midway  between  extension  and 
return.  To  show  it  in  the  middle  of  its  course 
suggests  only  pose,  and  stilted  pose  at  that.  Con^ 
sequently  walking  is  best  represented  not  by  a 
man  with  one  foot  in  the  air,  but  by  one  with  both 
feet  on  the  ground,  one  just  having  completed  its 
swing,  the  other  just  about  to  begin.  A  man  strik- 
ing a  blow  with  his  fist  should  be  represented 
either  with  an  arm  drawn  back  ready  to  strike  or 
with  an  arm  extended,  the  blow  having  been  al- 
ready launched,  but  never  with  it  in  a  halfway 
position.  Newspaper  photographers  are  the  most 
grievous  blunderers  in  this  respect  by  failing  to 
press  the  button  at  the  psychological  moment. 
The  accompanying  illustrations  clearly  represent 
the  truth  of  this  principle.  Compare  the  inert- 
ness, stiffness  and  lack  of  attractiveness  in  Group 
I  with  the  animation  and  interest  of  Group  II. 

115 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 


It  was  thought  that  the  introduction  of  moving 
pictures  and  kinematograph  photography  would 
be  of  great  service  to  the  painter  and  sculptor  in 


«45r>r. 


The  Auto  may  be 
powerless  on  some  of 
our  icy  country  roads, 
but  the  horse  with 

ROWE  ■£&  CALKS 

goes  along  SURELY  and 
SAFELY,  and  CAN  PULL  A 
HEAVY  LOAD  EASILY, 


The  smile  of  con- 
fidence on  man  and 
horse  tells  the  story 
•lainly — the  horse  has 

ROWE  S'  CALKS 

on  his  shoes  and  an 
otherwise  nervous 
animal  has  become  sure- 
footed. 


The  World  moves  and 
the  old-fashioned 
methods  of  horseshoe 
sharpening  must  give 
way  to  the  detachable 
Calks 

ROWE  HOt  CALKS 

Say  the  word  and  I 
•ill  get  a  set  ready 


The  look  of  satis- 
faction on  horse  and 
rider  shows  that  the 
Captain  is  having 
an  easier  time  of  It 
than  the  men  afoot ; 
but  he  would  not  have 


ARE  THEY  MOVING?      HOW  DID  YOU  GUESS  IT? 

Violating  the  Law  of  the  Resting  Point.     Suggestion  of  Pose 

rather  than  of  Activity. 

catching  their  living  subjects  in  the  process  of 
quick  action,  preserving  this  attitude  for  repro- 
duction with  brush  and  chisel.  But  it  was  found 
that  the  expectation  was  all  a  false  hope.  No  at- 
titude represented  action  so  vigorously  as   the 

116 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

resting  points  with  which  we  were  already  fa- 
miliar. The  reason  for  this  rather  surprising  cir- 
cumstance is  probably  to  be  found,  in  part,  in 


The  flight  of  Time  brings 
round  our  (give  date)  Anniver- 
^are  going  to  make 
-:.-::,-"•"-({...        V>f  mutual  interest 

\n  or  garden 


\  •*£**  *****       t.  ©o<  - 


THESE  MOVE  !      DO  THEY  NOT  ? 

Illustrating  the  Law  of  the  Eesting  Point.     Strong  Sugges- 
tion of  Activity. 

the  fact  that  the  eye  cannot  perceive  while  it  is  it- 
self in  motion.  Look  into  a  mirror  at  your  own 
eye,  meanwhile  moving  the  eye  about.  You  will 
find  yourself  unable  to  observe  the  movements  of 
your  own  eye.    For  in  the  moment  in  which  the 

117 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

movement  is  taking  place,  the  external  stimulus 
does  not  have  time  to  set  up  any  definite  images 
on  the  constantly  shifting  retina.  So  it  comes 
that,  just  because  we  do  not  see  the  intermediate 
positions  except  when  the  limb  is  deliberately  held 
there  fixed,  we  do  not  associate  them  with  the 
movement,  but  always  the  two  extremes  that  we 
do  see. 

Observe  the  mental  picture  called  up  in  your 
mind's  eye  when  you  read  the  words  "a  panther 
leaping. ' '  You  will  see  the  meaning  is  visualized 
either  by  the  picture  of  a  panther  preparing  to 
spring,  or  by  that  of  a  panther  just  alighted — 
probably  never  by  the  picture  of  a  panther  in 
the  progress  of  the  leap.  Or  if  this  should  hap- 
pen, you  will  find  that  the  panther  is  at  that 
resting  point  immediately  between  springing  and 
landing — the  point  between  ascent  and  descent, 
when  the  animal  hangs  poised  for  a  moment. 
So  a  successful  picture  of  a  man  leaping  a  fence 
must  catch  him  at  one  of  the  three  resting  points, 
the  moment  of  springing,  the  moment  of  alight- 
ing, or  the  moment  of  suspension  at  the  height  of 
the  leap  when  he  seems  poised  just  above  the 
fence. 

How,  then,  can  we  represent  action  when  there 
is  no  resting  point  to  be  caught?    There  are  per- 

118 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

haps  two  chief  types  of  cases  in  which  this  might 
be  desirable :  the  case  of  a  swiftly  moving  vehicle, 
and  that  of  vibrating  pieces  of  machinery.  Here 
we  clearly  have  a  different  proposition.  We  are 
dealing  with  inanimate  objects,  with  mechanically 
produced  and  uniform  motion.  The  law  of  asso- 
ciation which  we  invoked  to  explain  the  principle 
of  the  resting  point  must  also  come  to  our  assist- 
ance here.  All  we  can  do  is  to  portray  the  retinal 
picture  which  the  eye  gets  when  looking  at  such  a 
moving  object — blurred  spokes  in  the  wheels, 
streaming  ribbons  and  banners,  blurred  visions  of 
oscillating  levers,  or  what  not.  The  law  is  always 
to  put  there  just  what  the  eye  could  really  see 
and  no  more.  Too  much  interpretation  and  as- 
sistance on  the  part  of  the  artist  defeats  its  own 
purpose. 

5.      THE    COMIC 

The  use  of  the  comic  element  as  an  attention 
incentive  in  business  is,  to  say  the  least,  precari- 
ous, and  will  be  successful  only  in  the  most  skill- 
ful hands.  We  may  discuss  this  factor  under 
three  headings: 

A.  It  must  be  pointed  out  first  that  the  comic, 
while  it  attracts  and  sustains  attention,  draws  this 
attention  quite  unto  itself.     The  comic  pictures 

119 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

occupying  the  Boston  Rubber  Company's  adver- 
tisements attract  only  incidental  attention  to  the 
commodity  announced,  and  the  reader  remembers 
the  picture  but  not  the  brand  of  goods.  Repeated 
laboratory  tests  have  shown  this  to  be  true. 

B.  As  will  be  developed  later,  a  statement  of 
selling  points  is  perhaps  the  very  best  direction 
which  an  appeal  can  take.  Selling  points  are  seri- 
ous propositions,  and  so  is  the  effective  distribu- 
tion of  goods.  But  the  introduction  of  levity, 
which  usuallv  tends  toward  the  ridiculous  in  ad- 
vertising  copy,  seems  like  an  attempt  to  slur  over 
and  evade  a  discussion  of  the  pertinent  points  at 
issue  and  to  keep  attention  from  them  in  favor  of 
irrelevant  material.  The  weakness  of  irrelevant 
matter  we  have  already  had  occasion  to  point  out. 

C.  One  especially  important  characteristic  of 
the  comic  is  the  fact  that  we  soon  become  adapted 
to  it.  Jokes  and  funny  pictures  rapidly  become 
' '  chestnuts ' '  and  stale.  But  if  the  comic  appeal  is 
to  be  employed,  it  is  worth  while  knowing  that  the 
different  sorts  of  the  comic  do  not  grow  stale  with 
equal  rapidity.  Reports  of  a  prolonged  experi- 
ment on  the  effect  of  repetition  on  the  comic  and 
on  the  individual  differences  in  reaction  to  comic 
situations  have  already  been  published  by  the  au- 
thor.    The  full  discussion  can  be  found  in  the 

120 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

Psychological  Review  for  1911.    We  may  divide 
the  comic  into  two  main  types. 


The  rule  in  football  is 
"Hit  the  line  hard"  and 
'twas  ours  in  ordering  our 
'clothing  for  fall.  We  hit 
the  line  hard  and  selected 
the  finest  and  largest  assort- 
ment of  men's  styles  we 
have  ever  handled.  It  is 
a  line  that  you  and  every 
man  will  enjoy  looking 
^through  and  wearing. 

From  $15.  durability  to 
$35.  luxury,  whatever 
quality  you  select  you'll  get 
the  full  worth  of  your  money 

To-day  our  special  is  {describe  and 
•price) . 

The  Objective  Comic.     The   Calamity. 

1.  The  objective,  in  which  the  source  of  amuse- 
ment is  the  fact  that  some  other  person  is  in- 
volved in  a  predicament,  is  subordinated,  disap- 

121 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

pointed,    deceived,    tricked,    duped    or   bantered, 
either  by  a  third  person  or  by  natural  forces, 


"There    ain't    no    such     animal.'* 

"In  circus  announcements  ive  expect 
the  unexpected — but  the  store  that  ex~- 
aggerates  in  its  advertisements  is  simply 
signalling  to  the  sheriff." — Hubbell. 

Our  advertisements  are  so 
short,  we're  freed  from  the 
temptation  of  exaggeration. 

Here's  a  suit  at  $15.  and 
an  overcoat  at  $18.  where 
every  cent  of  the  cost  has 
been  expended  to  give  the 
customers  utmost  values, 
at  the  prices. 

The  Objective  Comic.     The  Naive. 

without  serious  consequences.  Under  such  cir- 
cumstances we  tend  to  be  amused.  The  calamity 
joke,  the  naive  or  unconscious  joke,  would  be  ex- 
amples of  this  group. 

122 


INTEREST    INCENTIVES 

The  second  group,  the  subjective  comic,  com- 
prises those  situations  in  which  the  laugh  is 
caused  by  the  fact  that  we  ourselves  are  tricked, 
surprised,    discomfited   mildly,    disappointed,    in 


Here's  a  square  pro- 
position for  the  man 
who  wants  an  all-round 
suit—a  suit  for  all  kinds 
of  wear  and  any  kind  of 
business.  We've  stud- 
ied every  corner  of  the 
clothing  business  to 
make  this  suit  a  winner, 
to  win  your  approval 
and  to  win  new  custom- 
ers. 

Some  special  trousers  for  tennis 
and  golf. 


The  Subjective  Comic.     Play  on  Words. 


expecting  one  thing,  one  event,  one  use  of  a  word, 
and  getting  instead  an  unexpected  one.  Exam- 
ples would  be  the  pun,  play  on  words,  the  sharp 
retort,  the  dialect  joke,  wit,  etc. 

Now  the  characteristic  of  the  objective  comic  is 
that  it  loses  its  flavor  rather  slowly — it  often 
waxes,  increasing  in  funniness  with  repetition. 
The  subjective  comic,  on  the  other  hand,  becomes 

123 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

stale  with  great  rapidity.  When  a  series  of  comic 
appeals,  containing  examples  of  both  classes,  is 
arranged  in  an  order  of  funniness  in  successive 


"Signs  of  an  early  spring.** 

Means  there's  got  to  be 
something  doing  in  our  fur 
coats. 

We  have  a  bunch  Of  hot 
ones  and  every  one  of  them 
anxious  to  get  in  touch  with 
YOU  to  prove  what  a  warm 
friend  it  can  be. 

Prices  $--  to  $— 

Fur  gloves  $—  to  $— 

Fur  caps  $—  to  $— 

The  Subjective  Comic.     Play  on  Words. 

trials  a  week  apart,  the  objective  jokes  rise  in  rel- 
ative value,  thus  constituting  a  waxing  class.  The 
subjective  appeals  fall  in  value,  thus  comprising 
a  waning  class.     Jokes  which  contain  both  ele- 

124 


INTEREST  INCENTIVES 

ments  remain  on  a  level.  The  reader  is  referred 
to  the  original  article  for  further  details.  But  the 
importance  of  this  waxing  and  waning  law,  in  se- 
lecting comic  appeals  to  be  repeatedly  seen  in  an 
advertisement,  is  clear  from  what  already  has 
been  said. 

6,    7,   8.      FEELING  TONE.   INSTINCT  AND   HABIT 

There   remain   yet    to   be   considered   the    in- 
terest incentives,  of  feeling  tone,  instinctive  re- 


The  Waring  Group 


Showing  the  Influence  of  Five  Eepetitions  on  Objectively 
Comic  Appeals.  The  Relative  Value  Increases 

sponse  and  effective  conception.    While  it  is  true 
that  these  three  appeals  have  a  strong  initial  at- 

125 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

tention  value,  their  greatest  service  lies  in  hold- 
ing the  attention  already  attracted  by  some  other 
device,  or  in  reinforcing  the  response  which  this 
appeal  invited.    Hence  we  shall  treat  feeling  tone 


The  W»niag  Group 


Showing  the  Influence  of  Five  Repetitions  on  Subjectively 
Comic  Appeals.  The  Relative  Value  Decreases 

under  the  heading  of  the  second  task,  and  instinct 
and  effective  conception  under  the  fourth  task  of 
an  advertisement.  But,  when  we  come  to  discuss 
their  value  as  "sustainers"  of  attention,  it  must 
be  remembered  that  all  that  is  said  of  them  there 
applies  equally  well  to  their  operation  as  initial 
appeals. 


CHAPTER  VII 

AN  EXPERIMENTAL  TEST  OF  THE  RELATIVE  ATTEN- 
TION AND  MEMORY  VALUE  OF  THE  MECHAN- 
ICAL AND  THE  INTEREST  DEVICES 

In  order  to  test  the  relative  value  of  the  inter- 
est incentives  as  compared  with  that  of  the  me- 
chanical devices,  an  interesting  experiment  was 
performed  with  the  aid  of  a  group  of  six  adver- 
tising men,  selected  from  a  class  which  had  been 
following  a  course  of  study  based  on  the  material 
presented  in  this  book.  These  men  were  made  fa- 
miliar, through  lectures  and  demonstrations,  with 
the  characteristics  of  the  two  groups  of  incen- 
tives. They  were  then  given  the  77  full-page  ad- 
vertisements found  in  an  issue  of  Everybody's 
Magazine,  and  asked  to  indicate,  in  the  case  of 
each  advertisement,  the  chief  three  incentives  re- 
lied on  to  attract  and  hold  attention.  When  less 
than  three  devices  were  found,  the  indication  in- 
cluded only  such  devices  as  were  clearly  discerni- 
ble. Three  psychologists  made  similar  determina- 
tions of  these  advertisements.  The  total  number 
of  votes,  for  the  two  classes  of  incentives,  was 
computed  for  each  advertisement,  thus  affording 

127 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

a  fairly  reliable  measure  of  the  ' '  character ' '  of 
each. 

Meanwhile  Dr.  E.  K.  Strong  tested  the  atten- 
tion and  memory  value  of  each  of  these  advertise- 
ments, as  shown  by  the  ability  of  137  women  to 
recognize  them  as  having  been  previously  seen  in 
a  copy  of  the  magazine  which  they  had  had  in 
their  possession  for  one  week,  with  instructions  to 
read  a  certain  article  therein,  in  connection  with 
their  regular  class  work  in  college.  None  of  these 
women  knew  that  they  were  going  to  be  in  any 
way  tested  for  their  memory  of  the  advertise- 
ments, nor,  indeed,  in  any  other  way. 

We  have,  then,  the  judgments  of  six  advertis- 
ing men  and  three  psychologists  on  the  type  of 
incentive  most  prominent  in  each  of  the  appeals, 
and  these  judgments  are  shown  in  the  following 
table.  We  have  also  a  measurement  of  the  at- 
tention and  memory  value  of  each  of  these  adver- 
tisements, as  secured  from  the  records  of  the  137 
women  readers.  The  following  table  gives  these, 
values,  also.  The  table  gives  the  results  for  the 
10  best  advertisements  (remembered  by  the  great- 
est number  of  readers)  and  for  the  10  poorest 
(remembered  by  the  fewest  readers),  exclusive  of 
the  six  advertisements  which  appeared  in  pre- 
ferred position  (cover  pages  and  next  to  reading 

128 


RELATIVE    VALUE    OF    INTEREST    DEVICES 


matter).  The  "incentives"  column  gives  the 
number  of  votes  for  each  of  the  two  types  of  de- 
vices. 

TABLE   VIII 

The  Ten  Best  Remembered 


Ph 

Firm  or  Commodity- 
Name 

Number 

of 

Mechanical 

Incentives 

Reported 

Number 

of 

Interest 

Incentives 

Reported 

Per  Cent, 
of  137 
people 
who  re- 
membered 

128 

Ivory  Soap 

6 
1 
1 

8 
8 
6 
5 
2 
1 
3 

16 
15 
6 
9 
15 
17 
15 
21 
18 
18 

8.2 

6 

Cosmopolitan 

8.0 

29 
117 

Barbara  Worth 

Gillette  Razor 

8.0 

7.2 

37 

Post  Toasties 

7.1 

36 
96 
66 
57 
60 

Campbell  Soup 

Western  Electric 

Baldwin  Piano 

Mallory  Hats 

7.1 
6.8 
6.6 
6.3 
6.3 

Averages 

4.1 

15 

7.2 

Percentage  Interest  Incentives,  78.5. 

The  Ten  Least  Remembered 


62 
55 
64 
63 
96 
48 
53 
30 
44 
52 


Overland  Auto 

Genasco 

Wilcox  Trucks .  . . 
Overland  Auto . . . 

Dahlstrom 

Underfeed 

J.  M.  Asbestos. . . 
Lord  and  Thomas 
Keystone  Watch . 
Congoleum 


Averages 


9 
3 
6 
9 
2 
3 
9 
4 
3 
5 


5.3 


4 
13 
12 
4 
1 
1 
9 
3 
5 
5 


5.7 


Percentage  Interest  Incentives,  51.8. 

129 


1.2 
0.9 
0.9 
0.7 
0.6 
0.2 
0.2 
0.2 
0.0 
0.0 


0.5 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

Two  things  are  clearly  indicated  by  the  table. 
In  the  first  place,  those  appeals  which  were  re 
membered  by  few  of  the  readers  are  the  ones 
which  utilize  few  definite  incentives  of  any  kind. 
They  are  the  ones  on  which  fewest  votes  were  cast 
for  any  incentives  whatsoever — they  were  doubt- 
less constructed  by  " inspiration,"  without  any 
conscious  or  formulated  plan  in  mind,  and  they 
well-nigh  defy  analysis,  either  by  the  advertising 
men  or  by  the  psychologists.  This  is  in  itself  a 
lesson  worth  learning. 

But  the  second  point  is  the  one  in  which  we  are 
most  interested  in  this  connection.  In  the  case 
of  the  advertisements  best  remembered,  78.5  per 
cent,  of  the  votes  were  for  interest  incentives. 
These  advertisements,  relying  for  the  most  part 
on  the  interest  devices  (picture,  novelty,  color, 
feeling  tone,  the  comic,  suggested  activity,  in- 
stinctive reaction,  and  habit),  are  remembered  by 
7.2  per  cent,  of  the  137  people,  that  is  to  say,  they 
were  remembered  over  14  times  as  often  as  were 
those  relying  on  mechanical  devices. 

In  the  case  of  these  latter  advertisements,  the 
average  amount  of  mechanical  incentive  (5.3)  is 
even  a  little  more  than  in  the  case  of  those  of  the 
first  group.  The  only  considerable  change  is  in 
the  degree  to  which  interest  incentives  are  relied 

130 


RELATIVE    VALUE    OF    INTEREST    DEVICES 

on.  Here  we  find  only  51.8  per  cent,  of  the  votes 
given  to  interest  incentives,  as  contrasted  with 
the  78.5  per  cent,  in  the  case  of  the  better  group. 
And,  indeed,  even  this  fairly  high  per  cent,  is  al- 
most entirely  due  to  two  of  the  appeals. 

Taking  the  appeals  one  by  one,  in  the  case  of 
the  10  best  remembered  ones,  without  exception, 
the  interest  incentives  predominate.  In  the  case 
of  the  10  least  remembered,  in  7  cases  out  of  the 
10  the  mechanical  incentives  either  equal  or  ex- 
ceed the  interest  incentives,  leaving  only  3  in 
which  the  reverse  is  the  case. 

The  superiority  of  the  interest  incentives,  for 
purposes  of  attention  and  memory,  for  which  we 
have  contended  throughout  this  discussion,  is 
most  thoroughly  confirmed  by  the  results  of  this 
experiment,  as  well  as  by  the  returns  from  adver- 
tisements actually  run. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE   SECOND    TASK:    HOLDING  THE   ATTENTION 

Let  us  assume,  now,  that,  through  the  applica- 
tion of  some  principle  in  the  foregoing  chapters, 
an  appeal  has  been  formed  so  as  to  attract  initial 
attention.  The  final  effectiveness  of  the  appeal 
will  depend  on  whether  or  not  this  attention  can 
be  held  long  enough  for  the  suggestion  or  the  ar- 
gument to  take  its  place  in  consciousness  along 
with  other  appeals  and  to  modify  the  later  re- 
sponses of  the  reader.  This  is  the  point  at  which 
the  persuasiveness  of  the  appeal  first  begins  to 
make  itself  felt.  Persuasion  is  simply  the  act  of 
holding  the  favorable  attention  long  enough  for 
the  stimulus  to  enter  into  effective  combination 
with  other  processes  in  consciousness.  Such  com- 
bination leads  to  the  response.  What  the  re- 
sponse is  will  be  determined  partly  by  the  needs, 
resources  and  general  purposes  of  the  reader. 
But  it  depends  also  largely  upon  the  character  of 
the  appeal,  for  this  appeal  may  be  potent  enough 

132 


HOLDING    THE    ATTENTION 

to  create  his  needs,  suggest  resources,  and  modify 
his  general  purposes. 

"We  have  already  seen  that  attention  always 
fluctuates  or  comes  in  pulses.  The  appeal  then 
cannot  operate  by  simply  prolonging  the  first  mo- 
ment of  attention.  It  must  be  so  constructed  that 
after  this  first  moment  the  eye  does  not  move  to 
another  thing,  but  fixates  again  and  again  the 
original  object,  that  is  to  say,  the  reader  must  be 
able  to  see  some  new  phase  or  aspect  in  the  origi- 
nal appeal.  Figure  1  (page  134)  is  able  to  hold 
attention,  but  it  does  so  by  appearing  to  change 
its  character.  Now  it  is  seen  as  a  stairway  lead- 
ing upward,  now  it  is  a  stairway  upside  down,  now 
a  set  of  steps  seen  from  below,  now  from  above, 
etc.  As  fast  as  attention  to  one  aspect  wanes  an- 
other aspect  suggests  itself.  The  same  is  true  of 
figures  2  and  3.  Watch  a  passenger  reading  the 
Subway  advertisements.  You  will  see  at  once  that 
he  hurries  by  some  cards  and  lingers  over  others. 
Or  compare  your  own  interest  in  the  follow- 
ing advertisements.  The  first  is  too  simple, 
the  second  is  too  complex  and  choppy,  while  the 
third  is  in  some  way  so  constructed  that  you  look 
at  it  again  and  again;  it  holds  your  attention. 
What  then  are  the  requisites  for  sustained  atten- 
tion ? 

133 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

Here  again  we  may  point  out  two  groups  of 
factors,  a  group  of  mechanical  devices  and  a 
group  of  interest  devices. 


FIGURE   1 


FIGURE    2 


FIGURE    3 

Figures  Appearing  to  Change  Character 

134 


HOLDING    THE    ATTENTION 

I.       MECHANICAL  HELPS 

1.  Complexity. — Unless  the  advertisement  is  in- 
tended to  be  a  mere  reminder,  a  mere  suggestion 


^ilEViaJ^w^r-fii-,.-.     ...<_>* 


"T 


New  Oriental  Gallery 


Astor    Place     SCution' 


Arrow  |  Collars 

You  "will    always    find    them   in   good  'society 

-      -  °1M     2   for    23* 


Cards  from  New  York  Subway 


of  some  other  appeal  previously  seen,  a  certain 
amount  of  complexity  is  requisite.  The  adver- 
tisement should  contain  shifting  points  so  that, 

135 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 


while  attention  must  fluctuate,  it  can  flit  from 
point  to  point,  aspect  to  aspect,  of  the  same  space. 
Perhaps  three  elements  or  units,  three  facts, 
styles,  etc.,  represent  the  ideal;  three  arguments 
or  propositions  of  interest,  three  figures  if  the  ad- 
vertisement takes  the  form  of  picture,  three 
styles  or  sizes  of  type,  three  color  masses,  etc. 


g  W*?*^^-'"'l*'f'''-.:!iW'Wrfy  ■"  '  ...m,..^*...^  ■,,...■■  ;,..».■  i.  ,   :yfu.  ..,  .  -,— ;   -      ---■— — - r— — T-wr  -.— , 


ITS  A 
HAPPY 
HABIT 


"Mu- 


W 


99  ShoePof/shes 

BLACK JAH  ANoWHfTf 


Securing  Unity  through  Structure 

This  allows  one  object  for  the  focus,  one  for  the 
field,  and  one  for  the  margin,  and,  if  the  elements 
are  properly  unified,  prevents  the  encroachment 
of  parts  of  some  foreign  unit  into  consciousness. 
2.  Unity. — The  second  mechanical  factor  then 
is  that  of  unity.  Not  only  must  there  be  com- 
plexity, but  the  elements  should  be  so  interrelated 
as  to  form  a  whole,  so  related  that  the  shift  from 
one  to  the  other  is  perfectly  natural.    ^There  are 

136 


HOLDING    THE    ATTENTION 

various  ways  in  which  this  unity  can  be  accom- 
plished. 

(a)  Structure. — The  elements  may  all  partici- 
pate in  a  general  design  or  composition,  as  do 
the  figures  in  the  Arrow  Collar  card.  By  the 
direction  in  which  the  faces  are  turned,  by  some 
common  act  in  which  all  are  engaged,  etc.,  atten- 
tion may  be  led  from  point  to  point  in  the  total 
composition,  and  always  returned,  in  the  long  run, 
to  the  salient  points  or  center  of  the  arrangement. 
Notice  how  all  the  lines  and  all  the  faces  of  all  the 
figures  are  turned  in  the  direction  of  the  man  with 
the  collar  in  the  Arrow  collar  card.  The  Sistine 
Madonna  is  the  classical  example  of  such  an  ar- 
rangement. Aside  from  these  devices  of  compo- 
sition, the  content  of  the  parts  may  all  assist  in 
the  formation  of  a  unit.  Thus  a  question  may  lead 
naturally  to  an  answer  which  follows  or  is  to  be 
found  in  another  part  of  the  composition. 

(b)  The  use  of  pointers,  curves,  arrows,  bor- 
ders and  similar  lines  may  also  be  used  to  the 
same  end.  The  border  gives  an  artificial  unity 
to  the  contents  bounded  by  it.  It  tends  to  keep 
the  eye  within  the  given  area,  since  the  eye  re- 
flexly  tends  to  follow  lines  rather  than  to  leap 
across  them.  Just  as  the  pasture  fence  keeps  the 
cattle  wandering  about  the  enclosure  instead  of 

137 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

breaking  out  of  it,  so  the  border,  the  curve,  the 
pointer,  keep  the  restless  eye  from  straying  to 
foreign  quarters  by  turning  it  ever  back  toward 
the  center  of  the  composition.  Moreover  these 
borders,  frames  and  lines  of  demarcation  may  be 

T".  ^JUt-iSS    ■- , 

IheTVey  [o  economy. 

Dr.  Sheffield's 

Creme  Dentifrice 

— —   THE   ORIGINAL  TOOTH   PASTE   — - — 

(The  excellent  quality  of  this  paste  and 
the  value  of  its  container,  enables  us  to 
offer  you  a  perfect  dentifrice  and       ^ 
a  perfect  package.  #^ 

Sold  everywhere  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  Established  jeso. 

An  Attempt  to  Secure  Unity  by  Mechanical  Means   (Lines) 

themselves  artistically  designed  and  so  possess 
positive  attention  value  which  may  reinforce  that 
of  the  content  of  the  space  which  they  embrace. 
The  simple  law  that  the  eye  tends  to  move  along 
lines  instead  of  across  them  is  worth  bearing  in 
mind. 

II.     INTEREST     DEVICES 

The  mechanical  devices  for  sustaining  attention 
should  not  be  disregarded,  but  their  importance 
is  insignificant  as  compared  with  what  we  may 
call  the  feeling  tone  of  the  appeal  itself.    By  feel- 

138 


HOLDING    THE    ATTENTION 

mg  tone  we  mean  the  pleasantness  or  unpleasant- 
ness which  accompanies  our  perception  of  objects. 
Every  object  in  our  experience  has  a  twofold 
character.  It  is  at  once  an  object  of  cognition 
and  an  object  of  feeling. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  cognition  it  is  this 
or  that  object,  has  this  or  that  use,  is  made  of  this 
or  that  material,  and  so  on.  From  the  other  point 
of  view  it  is  not  only  this  or  that  kind  of  object, 
but  it  also  makes  us  feel  agreeable  or  disagree- 
able, comfortable  or  uncomfortable  in  its  pres- 
ence. It  makes  us  feel  either  desire  or  aversion, 
it  either  attracts  or  repels.  Experiments  show 
that  we  not  only  feel  at  the  same  time  that  we 
perceive,  but  that  we  also  make  characteristic 
movements  toward  the  object. 

The  feeling  of  pleasantness  is  accompanied  by 
expansive,  open,  appropriative  bodily  attitudes, 
and  by  actual  movements  toward  the  agreeable 
stimulus.  Under  these  conditions  stimuli  effect 
easy  entrance  to  the  higher  levels,  make  strong 
impressions  and  are  long  remembered.  The  pleas- 
ant impression  tends  to  persist  in  consciousness, 
long  after  the  original  stimulus  has  been  removed. 

The  feeling  of  unpleasantness ,  on  the  contrary, 
is  accompanied  by  retractile,  conflicting  or  eva- 
sive  movements,  the   organism  tends  to   shrink 

139 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

away  from  the  stimulus  rather  than  to  move 
towards  it.  Under  these  conditions  the  resistance 
of  the  nervous  pathways  is  increased,  stimuli 
make  relatively  faint  impression,  and  this  impres- 
sion tends  easily  to  oblivisce  or  be  forgot- 
ten. Along  with  the  law  of  persistence  of  the 
pleasant  goes  that  of  the  obliviscence  of  the  dis- 
agreeable.1 The  importance  of  the  feeling  tone 
of  an  appeal  ought,  then,  to  be  very  apparent. 
The  feeling  tone  of  an  advertisement,  as  of  any 
other  object,  will  influence  not  only  the  amount 
of  attention  it  receives  but  its  persistence  in  con- 
sciousness as  well,  and  it  follows  that  the  reac- 
tion to  the  appeal  will  also  involve  the  article  in 
the  interest  of  which  the  appeal  is  made. 

The  feeling  tone  of  an  appeal  may  depend  on 
two  principal  factors : 

I.  On  its  form  or  arrangement,  its  character  as 
a  work  of  art,  its  general  beauty.  Symmetry, 
proportion,  clearness,  balance,  the  quality  of 
lines,  spaces,  masses,  colors,  harmonies,  at- 
mosphere, all  play  their  role  here,  all  of  those  ele- 
ments and  laws  of  design  which  a  course  on  the 
"Principles  of  Arrangement "  would  treat. 

II.  The  feeling  tone  will  depend  not  only  on  the 

1  See  the  article  on  this  subject,  by  the  writer,  in  the  Journal  of 
Philosophy,    Psychology    and   Scientific   Methods,    Dec.    22,    1910. 

140 


HOLDING    THE    ATTENTION 

form  of  the  appeal  but  on  its  content  as  well. 
Words  have  their  feeling  tone  just  as  do  lines 
and  color.  Besides,  certain  objects,  ideas,  topics, 
people,  purposes,  characteristics,  arguments,  as- 
sociations, etc.,  have  the  power  to  arouse  strong 
agreeable  feeling  on  the  part  of  the  reader  while 
others  are  intrinsically  repulsive. 


CHAPTER   IX 

FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 

These  factors  I  shall  discuss  under  the  head- 
ings of  the  various  elements  of  design — lines, 
form,  relations,  masses,  colors,  harmonies,  etc. 

LINES 

Mathematically,  lines  are  lacking  in  quality  as 
they  are  in  width,  but  psychologically,  even  the 
simplest  line,  as  it  appears  in  sketching,  has  both 
feeling  tone  and  symbolic  significance.  This  feel- 
ing tone  of  lines  can  be  utilized  to  advantage  in 
representing  advertised  articles  by  both  relevant 
and  irrelevant  cuts,  and  should  also  be  consid- 
ered in  the  appropriate  selection  of  type  faces. 
The  feeling  tone  of  a  line  depends  upon  three 
chief  factors:  (1)  its  quality;  (2)  its  direction; 
(3)  its  character,  as  straight  or  curved. 

Quality. — The  factors  constituting  the  qual- 
ity of  a  line  are:  (1)  breadth;  (2)  intensity;  (3) 
texture;    (4)    color.      By   these   we   mean:      (1) 

142 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 


whether  the  line  is  wide  or  narrow;  (2)  dark  or 
light;  (3)  rough  or  smooth;  (4)  its  hue. 


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The  Fine  Black   Line,  Suggesting  Precision   and   Hardness 

Speaking   generally,    the    following   principles 
hold: 

The  fine  gray  line  suggests  delicacy  of  tex- 
ture. 

The  fine  black  line  suggests  precision  and 
hardness. 

The   broad  rough  line   suggests   homeliness 

and  solidity. 

143 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

The  proper  selection  of  lines  in  cuts  or  copy  is 
of  great  utility  in  showing  the  texture  of  the  ar- 
ticle, or  in  lending  atmosphere  either  to  the  cut, 
the  object,  or  the  appeal  as  a  whole. 


Solid  Silver 

for 

Wedding:  Gifts 


The  productions  in  Silver  now  displayed  in  the 
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ments in  the  art  of  stlversmlthing  in  this  period  of 
its  greatest  development. 

The  collection  is  not  approached  elsewhere  in 
quality  and  variety  of  complete  sets  and  Individual 
pieces,  but  while  It  is  so  comprehensive  it  has  been 
so  carefully  and  conveniently  arranged  that  your 
invited  inspection  may  be  made  without  confusion 
or  waste  of  energy. 

Choice  also  may  be  exercised  within  an  extensive 
range  as  to  article,  pattern  or  cost,  with  equal 
freedom  from  trouble  or  embarrassment 

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The  Broad  Black  Line,  Suggesting  Solidity  and  Weight 


Direction. — 1.  Verticals. — The  moderate  use 
of  vertical  lines  conveys  a  suggestion  of  simplic- 
ity, firmness  and  dignity,  with  a  certain  severe 
grace.  Excess  of  verticals,  however,  is  likely  to 
give  stiffness  and  rigid  formality. 

There  are  two  psychological  reasons  for  this  ef- 
fect of  verticals : 

144 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 

(a)  The  feeling  tone  of  all  spatial  elements,  as 
of  many  spatial  arrangements,  depends  on  imi- 
tative tendencies  to  movement  or  attitude  which 
they  provoke  on  the  part  of  the  observer.  The 
instinctive  response  to  a  vertical  line  consists  in 
straightening  out  the  body,  assuming  an  erect 
position.  This  is  the  position  we  assume  in  mo- 
ments of  formality,   sternness,   attention,   dress 


—.•••-!■'  I  -_-.«. M  »■,■ 


,yt-v:.'^' 

THE 


©Kfctdet 
PARLOR  BED 

It's  a  DAVENPORT-a  beautiful  one.  -     It'*  a  BED -a  delightful  one. 
Both  for  the.  cost  of  one.  .       Both  in  the  space  for  one. 


AND 

YOU  WILL 

BUY  IT 


ASK  TO   SEE    IT 

ALL  fUHKITUK  01  Alt R J 


jfH.H   it.    ili^i-V    n-ii-i    -I      ■     ■  r-i"  ii  ■. -Mi 'y  J 


Illustrating  Appropriate  Use  of  Horizontal  Lines 


parade,  etc.,  and  hence  at  once  suggests  to  us  the 
emotions  accompanying  these  movements. 

(b)  Ideal  literary  and  architectural  associa- 
tions of  towers,  monuments,  columns,  warriors, 
etc.,  with  their  erect,  proud  direction,  have  come 
to  make  the  vertical  symbolic  of  "uprightness," 
moral  strength,  and  this  symbolism  still  attaches 
itself  to  such  a  line,  even  when  it  is  in  no  sense  a 
part  of  the  object  with  which  the  original  asso- 
ciation was  made. 

2.  Horizontals. — The  movement  from   side  to 

145 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

side  is  the  movement  which  the  eye  can  execute 
with  the  least  effort.  So  much  is  this  true  that 
we  overestimate  the  length  of  verticals  as  com- 
pared with  equal  horizontals,  since  the  former  re- 
quire so  much  effort  for  the  eye  to  sweep  along 
them  from  end  to  end.  Side  to  side  movements 
are  frequent,  as  in  sweeping  the  horizon,  reading, 
looking  at  an  audience,  etc.    Their  very  frequency 


Illustrating  Inappropriate  Use  of  Diagonal  Lines 

is  probably  the  chief  reason  for  their  relatively 
greater  ease.  Hence  the  horizontal  is  the  line  of 
ease,  quiescence  and  repose,  almost  of  languor, 
' '  the  suggestion  of  lying  down  and  the  consequent 
suggestion  of  quiet  and  relaxation  being  particu- 
larly strong." 

As  is  well  known,  the  headpiece  of  the  Roman 
cross  must  be  actually  shorter  if  it  is  to  appear 
equal  to  the  arm  pieces.  The  extra  effort  in- 
volved in  running  the  eye  along  the  vertical  head 
piece  makes  that  line  seem  equal  in  length  to  the 

146 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 

actually  longer  but  more  easily  perceived  horizon- 
tal arm. 

3.  Diagonals. — The  diagonal  line  seems  to  the 
observer  to  be  full  of  action  and  movement.  The 
psychological  reasons  for  its  possession  of  this 
character  are: 

(a)  The  fact  that  our  bodies  when  engaged  in 
tense  action  of  effort  or  movement  are  thrown 
into  such  oblique  lines  in  order  to  counterbalance 
load  or  resistance.  Hence,  when  we  see  these  di- 
agonals, we  associate  the  direction  with  the  ob- 
lique lines  which  we  observe  when  human  beings 
are  active. 

(b)  The  diagonal  sets  up  imitative  movements 
on  the  part  of  the  observer.  We  tend  to  throw  our 
own  body  in  a  direction  corresponding  to  that  of 
the  line,  and  these  movements  at  once  call  up  the 
feelings  of  strain  and  activity  associated  with 
them  under  other  circumstances.  The  "Gladiator 
Combatant "  in  the  Louvre  and  the  diagonal  of 
the  three  figures  running,  suggests  this  rush  and 
speed  of  the  oblique  line  generally.  So  does  St. 
Gaudens'  bas-relief  on  Boston  Commons,  and  the 
Winged  Victory  fragment. 

4.  Curves. — Generally  speaking,  curves  are  more 
pleasing  than  straight  lines,  whether  the  curve  be 
arc,  serpentine,  loop,  spiral  or  what  not.     The 

147 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND   RESPONSE 

reason  for  this  preference  for  curves  is  not  very 
clear.  The  old  theory  that  the  most  natural  and 
agreeable  eye  movement  was  such  as  would  be 


Feeling  Tone  from  Direction  of  Lines 


made  in  following  the  preferred  curves  has  been 
shown  to  be  false.  The  eye,  even  in  following 
curves,  exerts  jerky  and  irregular  movements, 
which  when  traced  or  photographed  do  not  at  all 
make  aesthetic  lines.  The  most  probable  explan- 
ation is  that  offered  by  Gordon  that  "the  curve 

148 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 

suggests  smooth  and  easy  movement  in  other 
parts  of  the  body.  We  are  able  to  move  hand, 
wrists,  head  and  feet,  at  least  in  serpentine  lines 
and  to  experience  the  greatest  ease  and  pleasure 
as  well  as  the  greater  economy  and  power  of  these 
movements.  It  seems  fair  to  assume  that  the 
memory  of  these  movements,  and  perhaps  some 
actual  half-conscious  movements  like  them,  may 
be  the  basis  of  our  aesthetic  appreciation  of  the 
serpentine  line. " 

At  any  rate,  curves,  whether  they  occur  in  copy, 
cut  or  decorative  design,  avoid  the  hardness  and 
stiffness  likely  to  be  produced  by  straight  lines, 
giving  an  atmosphere  of  grace,  pliability,  richness 
and  voluptuousness. 

CLOSED  FORMS 

Geometrical  forms,  as  well  as  lines,  have  their 
own  individual  feeling  tone  due  (1)  to  the  char- 
acter of  their  boundary  lines  and  (2)  to  the  char- 
acter of  the  enclosed  space.  The  chief  source  of 
these  qualities  seems  again  to  be  imitative  move- 
ments or  memories  on  our  own  part. 

1.  The  triangle  with  its  diagonal  lines  and 
sharp  corners  is  lively,  incisive  and  delicately  bal- 
anced. Especially  if  it  be  not  resting  on  its  base, 
it  is  strongly  suggestive  of  spirit,  life  and  con- 

149 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

stant  motion.  The  stars  themselves  are  not  really 
five-pointed,  but  nothing-  represents  their  twink- 
ling better  than  a  combination  of  triangles.  Tri- 
angles would  form  an  appropriate  border  for  ad- 
vertisements of  sparkling  water,  wine,  lively  mu- 
sic, light,  etc.  An  isosceles  triangle  resting  on  its 
base  is  a  perfect  example  of  balance  that  is  not 
dead  but  quite  alive  and  active. 

2.  The  square,  composed  as  it  is  of  vertical  and 
horizontal  lines,  unites  at  once  the  stiffness  and 
firmness  of  the  former  with  the  ease  and  repose 
of  the  latter,  hence  suggests  solidity  and  strength, 
sturdiness.  This  is  true  so  long  as  the  square 
remains  on  one  of  its  sides.  The  moment  it 
stands  on  one  corner  it  resolves  itself  into  tri- 
angles and  conveys  the  corresponding  impression 
of  delicate  balance  and  liveliness. 

3.  The  Oblong. — These  forms  vary  so  much  in 
proportion  and  magnitude  that  it  is  difficult  to  as- 
sign them  as  a  class  any  common  emotional  qual- 
ity. But  one  interesting  and  important  feature 
about  them  is  the  fact  of  rather  decided  prefer- 
ence for  certain  proportions.  Nearly  a  hundred 
years  ago  Zeising  argued  for  the  "  golden  sec- 
tion' '  as  the  most  beautiful  of  all  proportions. 
By  the  "golden  section "  is  meant  a  division  of  a 
whole  into  two  parts,  in  such  a  relation  that  the 

150 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 

size  of  the  whole  is  to  the  size  of  the  larger  part 
as  that  part  is  to  the  smaller  (a  +  b :  a :  :  a :  b),  or, 
roughly,  a  ratio  between  the  two  parts  of  3:5. 
The  law  was  supposed  to  hold  for  the  division 
of  lines  and  rectangles,  dimensions  of  rectangles, 
ellipses,  and  other  geometrical  forms,  as  well  as 
for  concrete  objects  of  art  and  industry,  rooms, 
blocks,  playing  cards,  windows,  doors,  fountains, 
books,  writing  paper,  etc. 

In  order  to  be  most  pleasing,  the  dimensions  of 
these  objects  must  conform  to  the  3 : 5  ratio. 
There  has  since  been  considerable  experimental 
evidence  for  this  preference,  and  the  measure- 
ment of  many  forms  which  are  pleasing  will  be 
found  to  conform  to  it.  Advertisements  should 
utilize  all  possible  chances  of  pleasing  the  eye. 
The  division  of  the  advertisement  into  cut  and 
copy,  the  size  of  the  card  or  space,  the  shape  of 
trade  marks,  etc.,  could  all  utilize  the  principle, 
and  doubtless  with  good  effect.  But  it  should  be 
remarked  here  that  the  apparent  proportion  of  a 
closed  space  form  is  often  modified  by  the  influ- 
ence of  adjacent  elements  and  figures  and  the 
role  which  the  form  plays  in  the  design  as  a  whole. 
So  much  for  the  lines  and  forms.  Let  us  now 
turn  to  the  matter  of  relations,  or  to  what  are 
called  the  principles  of  design. 

151 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 


PRINCIPLES  OF  DESIGN 

The  general  laws  of  arrangement  will  be  found 
fully  analyzed  in  text  books  on  design  and  deco- 
ration, and  somewhat  more  briefly  in  the  text 
books  on  aesthetics,  but  it  seems  worth  while  to 
sum  up  a  few  of  these  principles  in  the  present 
connection.  So  far  as  we  shall  do  this,  the  mat- 
ter will  fall  under  the  three  heads  of  rhythm,  bal- 
ance and  stability. 

1.  Rhythm  is  an  important  element  in  agreeable 
decoration,  such  as  borders,  etc.  The  basis  of 
rhythm  lies  in  the  motor  response,  of  an  imita- 
tive kind,  which  the  observer  makes.  The  body  is 
a  rhythmical  machine,  and  repetitions  that  fall  in 
with  organic  rhythm  easily  fall  into  rhythmical 
groupings  in  perception. 

Rhythm  consists  of  some  kind  of  repetition, 
but  this  repetition  need  not  be  literal  nor  com- 
plete. The  essential  thing  aboiit  rhythm  in  spa- 
tial design  is  that  the  direction  of  the  ?novement 
be  (1)  definite  and  (2)  clearly  indicated. 


n 


does  not  produce  a  rhythmical  effect,  but — 

152 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 


B 

does,  since  it  reads  clearly  from  left  to  right.  The 
single  element  gives  direction,  and  the  design  as 
a  whole  is  but  a  repetition  of  this  motive.  In  A 
the  movement  may  be  either  left-right  or  right- 
left,  hence  A  cannot  be  called  a  rhythmical  de- 
sign. But  there  may  be  subdivision  of  the  ele- 
ment, so  that  some  larger  section  of  the  design 
serves  as  the  motive. 
Thus  in 


C 


there  is  repetition  more  or  less  complete,  but  only 
the  group  of  four  elements  suggests  direction, 
hence  the  group  would  be  the  element  of  rhythm. 
This  is  also  true  in  the  case  of  D. 


D 


1 

1 

1* 

2.  Balance  in  Design. — Just  as  balance  is  neces- 
sary in  color  arrangement,  so  it  is  an  essential 

153 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND   RESPONSE 

factor  in  spatial  arrangement.  The  human  body 
is  bilaterally  symmetrical,  and  designs  which  set 
up  bi-symmetrical  movements  of  examination,  re- 
sponse or  imitation  fit  in  most  agreeably  with  the 
organic  habit  and  structure.  The  most  perfect 
balance  would  be  what  we  call  bilateral  sym- 
metry. In  such  compositions  each  half  is  a  per- 
fect copy  of  the  other  except  for  direction.  Only 
in  very  formal  compositions  can  this  condition  be 
conformed  to.  In  actual  representative  painting, 
in  type  arrangement  and  illustrations  by  cuts, 
some  deviation  is  of  course  required. 

So  for  practical  purposes  we  usually  have  to 
resort  to  what  Puffer  calls  "substitutional  sym- 
metry/ '  According  to  the  principles  of  "substi- 
tutional symmetry"  there  are  four  items  of 
"weight"  in  composition,  and  these  four  items 
may  be  made  to  balance  each  other  in  various 
combinations.    The  items  are : 

1.  Mass. 

2.  Depth  or  vista. 

3.  Direction  (of  line  or  motion  or  attention). 

4.  Interest. 

Says  Gordon:  "In  good  pictures  one  will 
probably  find  an  equation  in  which  two  of  these 
items  are  set  over  against  the  other  two,  unless 

154 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 


\<»- 


t>~/*!' 


Like    aeroplanes 
My  favorite  trains 
O'er  top  the  lofty 
Mountain  chains. 

There's  cool  delight 
At  such  a  height 
Upon  the  road. " 

of  Anthracite. 


Railroad 


Balance  of  Mass  against   Vista   (Distance) 

it  happens  that  one  item  is  extraordinarily 
stronger,  and  in  this  case  it  will  be  balanced  by 
the  other  three.  In  a  portrait,  for  instance,  if  the 
mass  of  the  person's  form  is  on  one  side  of  the 


mm 


*t  Paint  it  with 

New-Skin 
arid  forget  it" 


j£gw  ■  EsSS"" 


gi-wM 


Mechanical  Balance  of  Mass  against  Mass 


canvas,  together  with  some  interesting  object, 
like  a  flower  or  an  animal,  one  wonld  expect  to 
find  on  the  opposite  side  some  vista  of  depth  or 
direction  of  attention  by  means  of  line  or  mo- 
tion. ' ' 

155 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 


In  this  substitutional  symmetry  a  small,  inter^ 
esting  object  is  found  to  balance  a  larger  but  less 


interesting  one. 


J^ik.  '  ■ 


THE  PEROXIDE  CREAM 


Based  on  Oxygen— - 

the  greatest  cleanser  known. 
Keeps  the  skin  healthy  by  keeping  it  clean. 
Healing,  refreshing,  beautifying." 


.Vgfpt  no  suhstitTjtf. 


Look  for  the  wri  OXY. 


Prepared  only  by  the  Bell  Qiemical  Company,  New  York 


Disregards  the  Law  of  Balance 

3.  Stability. — Here  we  may  again  quote  Gor- 
don: "Anoiner  phase  of  the  problem  of  bal- 
ance is  the  distribution  of  masses  and  space 
between  the  upper  and  lower  parts  of  a  compo- 
sition. An  arrangement  may  be  symmetrical  on 
its  right  and  left  halves,  but  wholly  unsymmetri- 
cal  as  between  upper  and  lower  halves.  In  gen- 
eral, to  prevent  top-heaviness  and  give,  as  it  were, 
enough  ballast  to  a  composition,  there  should  be 
more  below  the  center  than  above  it.  Pierce's 
experiments  show  that  the  principle  of  stability 
is  even  of  more  moment  than  that  of  left  and 
right  balance.  An  inverted  pyramid  would  be  an 
unpleasant  and  precarious-looking  structure.  The 
visible  sign  of  a  sure  equilibrium  is  breadth  of 
base,  and  most  massive  things  are  built  to  slope 
by  more  or  less  obvious  degrees  toward  their  tops. 

156 


FEELING    TONE    OF    FORM 

It  is  not  true,  though,  that  all  beautiful  and  well- 
poised  forms  are  larger  at  the  bottom ;  very  good 
effects  are  sometimes  secured  by  putting  the  mass 
of  the  thing  represented  near  the  upper  limit  of 
the  picture.  A  mass  of  graceful  flowers  may  fill 
the  upper  part  with  only  their  slender  stocks  be- 
low; a  drift  of  clouds  or  a  flock  of  birds  may  be 
shown  high  up  in  the  picture,  with  only  a  few 
landscape  lines  below,  the  nearest  approach  to 
empty  space.  Why  do  not  such  pictures  look  as 
top-heavy  and  unstable  as  the  inverted  pyramid? 
' '  The  reason  is  that  they  represent  things  that 
are  not  dead,  inanimate  weights,  but  are  delicate 
and  light.  Placing  the  flowers  or  clouds  or  birds 
above  the  center  of  the  picture,  with  the  empty 
space  below,  is  just  what  suits  their  character, 
and  brings  out  their  lightness  and  buoyancy. 
These  two  facts,  then,  are  part  of  the  same  truth ; 
to  gain  stability,  large  masses  must  be  below  the 
center,  and  this  is  appropriate  when  the  masses 
are  supposed  to  be  heavy;  to  gain  freedom  and 
buoyancy,  masses  may  lie  above  the  center,  and 
this  is  appropriate  when  the  masses  represent 
something  light." 


CHAPTER  X 

FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

Under  this  heading  come  the  topics :  color  qual- 
ity, color  harmony  and  balance,  relations  of  feel- 
ing tone  to  imagination,  imagery  types,  feeling 
tone  of  words,  pictures  and  associations,  and  the 
curious  facts  of  synesthesia.  These  topics  we 
now  take  up  in  order. 

CHARACTER   OF    COLORS 

To  sensitive  observers  the  simple  colors,  taken 
separately,  possess  different  emotional  tones. 
This  tone  depends  partly  on  the  physiological 
factors  already  discussed,  and  partly  on  associa- 
tions which  may  have  been  originally  of  a  more 
or  less  arbitrary  kind.  On  this  point  I  can  do  no 
better  than  quote  from  Gordon's  " ^Esthetics' ' 
(p.  146). 

1.  Red. — "Red  has  been  compared  to  the  blare 
of  a  trumpet,  loud  and  ringing;  it  is  also  known 
as  one  of  the  'warm'  colors.  Some  clue  to  the 
emotional  effect  of  a  color  is  gained  by  a  glance 

158 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

at  the  associations  and  the  symbolism  which  have 
grown  up  around  it.  Bed,  the  color  of  the  blood, 
is  the  symbol  of  passion  and  death.  Among  the 
Chinese  it  is  said  to  denote  virtue  and  truth. 
With  the  ancient  Romans  the  red  flag  was  the 
battle  signal.  In  the  middle  ages  of  Europe  the 
candidate  for  knighthood  was  invested  with  the 
red  garment  in  token  of  his  readiness  to  shed  his 
blood.  In  the  Christian  era  Christ  and  the  Vir- 
gin are  very  generally  represented  as  wearing  a 
red  tunic  under  a  blue  mantle.  The  symbolic  use 
of  red  in  modern  art  is  illustrated  in  Rossetti;  in 
' Dante's  Dream'  the  angel  of  love  is  all  in  scarlet 
and  scarlet  poppies  strew  the  floor,  and  in  'Beata 
Beatrix'  there  is  the  scarlet  dove.  A  distinction 
was  made,  in  religious  art,  between  different 
qualities  of  the  same  color;  for  example,  a  clear 
red  denoted  a  pure  feeling,  but  a  muddy  red  was 
the  hue  of  sin.  In  Abbey's  'Holy  Grail'  paintings 
the  robe  of  Gallahad  is  a  clear  red."' 

2.  Yellow. — *  *  The  yellow  of  the  spectrum  is  the 
brightest  of  all  the  spectral  hues.  It  is  joyous 
and  uplifting;  in  the  orient  a  sacred  color,  a  sym- 
bol of  faith  and  of  the  sun.  The  Christian  church, 
however,  made  yellow  the  color  of  dishonor,  and 
in  popular  symbolism  it  stands  for  jealousy  and 
decay.    Pale  yellow  and  gold  are  among  the  most 

159 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

adaptable  colors  in  the  sense  of  making  pleasant 
combinations  with  almost  any  other  color.  Both 
red  and  yellow  are  usually  spoken  of  as  strong 
or  exciting  colors,  though  the  type  of  excitement 
is  not  the  same  in  both.  Eed  is  said  to  suggest  a 
hurried,  onward,  dashing,  but  orderly  movement, 
accompanied  by  sound;  yellow  a  lighter,  airy, 
whirling  movement. ' ' 

3.  Green. — "Green  belongs  to  the  cool  end  of 
the  spectrum,  and  is  less  exciting  than  the  reds 
and  yellows.  Grant  Allen  points  out  that  green 
is,  among  primitive  peoples,  relatively  unprized. 
He  says  the  men  in  civilized  communities,  i.e.,  in 
cities,  have  missed  the  green  of  the  fields  and 
woods,  and  hence  have  come  to  the  appreciation 
of  it.  In  Christian  symbolism  it  stands  for  hope 
and  inspiration.  We  connect  it  also  with  spring- 
time and  growing  things." 

4.  Blue. — "Blue  is  generally  felt  to  be  cool  and 
calm  and  to  be  suggestive  of  stillness  and  depth. 
Ruskin  writes  as  follows :  '  Wherever  Turner  gives 
blue,  there  he  gives  atmosphere;  it  is  air,  not 
object.  Blue  he  gives  to  his  sea,  so  does  nature; 
blue  he  gives,  sapphire  dee]),  to  his  eternal  dis- 
tance, so  does  nature ;  blue  he  gives  to  the  mighty 
shadows  and  hollows  of  his  hills — but  blue  he 
gives  not  where  detailed  and  illumined  surfaces 

160 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

are  visible.'  Lafcadio  Hearn  writes  similarly 
and  says  that  blue  appeals  to  one's  ideas  of  'alti- 
tude, of  vastness  and  of  profundity,'  and  that  it 
is  the  'tint  of  distance  and  vagueness.'  And 
again,  'Vivid  blue,  unlike  other  bright  colors,  is 
never  associated  in  our  experience  of  nature  with 
large  opaque  solidity.' 

"Blue  tones,  thus,  since  they  are  enveloping, 
atmospheric  and  spacious,  should  be  proper  for 
the  decoration  of  backgrounds,  of  walls  and  of 
ceilings.  The  beautiful  fitness  of  Puvis  de  Cha- 
vannes'  mural  paintings  is  due  in  part  to 
their  soft  prevailing  blues.  Blue  in  Christian 
art  and  in  popular  symbolism  is  the  color  for  con- 
stancy. ' ' 

5.  White,  Gray  and  Black. — "White  stimu- 
lates a  joyful  but  serene  mood.  It  is  the  symbolic 
color  of  joy  and  purity.  Gray  is  of  all  colors  the 
most  sober,  quiet  and  subtle.  A  laboratory  sub- 
ject, whose  task  was  to  look  at  a  large  sheet  of 
gray  paper  and  to  record  her  impression  of  the 
color  experience,  wrote  as  follows:  'Visually  a 
pure  gray,  it  gives  the  impression  of  softness  and 
depth.  I  seem  to  hear  its  very  quietness.  Its 
gentleness  of  gradation  and  of  shading  suggests 
grace,  delicacy,  and  expertness.  The  whole  ex- 
perience is  one  of  neatness,  delicacy,  and  refine- 

161 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

ment,  which  ideas  produce  a  bodily  feeling  of 
reverence  or  of  deference.'  " 

Poetically  we  find  gray  referred  to  as  a  "chas- 
tened tinge"  or  as  ashen  or  sober. 

Black  by  itself  is  melancholy  and  depressing,  it 
is  the  symbol,  among  western  peoples,  of  grief  and 
death.  It  stands  also  for  quiet.  In  combination 
with  other  colors,  particularly  when  it  is  limited 
in  extent,  black  makes  the  impression  of  great 
concentration  and  strength.  No  other  color  has 
more  "character"  than  black. 


COLOR  COMBINATIONS 

Without  going  into  the  technical  aspect  of  color 
mixture  or  of  decorative  design  we  may  give  sev- 
eral leading  principles  of  agreeable  color  combi- 
nations : 

1.  Cool  colors  harmonize  well  with  their  own 
tints,  but  tints  of  warm  colors  usuallv  harmonize 
best  with  other  colors,  or  with  their  own  shades. 

2.  Complementary  colors  combine  agreeably,  but 
combinations  of  colors  not  quite  complementary 
(leaning  toward  the  warm  end)  are  usually  pre- 
ferred. 

3.  Oranges  and  yellows  and  golds  have  the  most 
acceptable  harmonizing  qualities,  and  they  com- 

162 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

bine  well  both  with  their  own  shades  and  with 
other  colors.  Even  discordant  colors  can  often 
be  reconciled  by  joining  their  edges  with  a  band 
of  gold. 

4.  For  the  most  part,  colors  combine  pleasantly 
with  the  white-gray-black  series.  But  it  seems 
that  the  better  a  color  harmonizes  with  other  col- 
ors, the  less  pleasing  is  it  in  combination  with 
gray. 

5.  The  most  agreeable  combinations,  according 
to  Kirschmann,  are  those  which  exhibit  three 
kinds  of  contrast  effect,  namely :  Contrast  of  hue, 
of  brightness  and  saturation. 

6.  For  brilliant  and  vivacious  effects  the  con- 
trasted color  scheme  is  the  best  suited.  "This 
would  show,  perhaps,  two  key  colors,  whose  tints 
and  shades  would  weave  together,  or,  according 
to  some,  a  concentrated  scheme  must  represent 
the  three  colors  red,  blue  and  yellow' '  (Gordon, 
p.  151). 

7.  For  a  more  uniform  and  subdued  effect  the 
gradual  transition  of  the  dominant  method  is  bet- 
ter suited.  Here  "there  should  be  one  prevailing 
hue,  and  variations  should  be  introduced  by 
changes  in  the  saturation  and  brightness  and  by 
limited  changes  in  hue.  There  might  be  touches 
of  contrasted  colors,  but  not  enough  to  interfere 

163 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

with  the  impression  of  a  single  governing  hue'7 
(Gordon,  p.  151). 

COLOR  BALANCE 

1..  Quantity  (From  Gordon,  p.  153). — "When 
two  masses  of  color  are  alike  in  every  way,  hue, 
brightness,  saturation,  size,  shape — occupying 
symmetrical  positions  on  either  side  of  a  picture 
or  design — they  are  said  to  balance.  In  this  fig- 
urative conception  of  balance  the  center  of  the 
picture  is  regarded  as  a  fulcrum  and  the  horizon- 
tal distances  out  from  the  center  are  the  two  arms 
of  the  lever.  We  know  that  in  maintaining  a 
literal  physical  balance,  if  we  shorten  the  arm  of 
a  lever  on  one  side  we  must  increase  the  weight 
on  that  side,  but  that  if  we  lengthen  the  arm  we 
must  diminish  the  weight.  The  same  thing  is  true 
of  the  apparent  balance  between  color  masses.  A 
small  color  mass  far  out  from  the  center  balances 
a  large  mass  close  up  to  the  center.  A  more  com- 
plex problem  presents  itself  when  the  two  op- 
posed colors  are  no  longer  of  the  same  quality; 
when,  for  instance,  blue  must  be  balanced  with 
orange,  or  yellow  with  green.  Experiments  show 
that  (on  a  dark  background)  a  small  mass  of 
bright  color  seems  to  balance  a  large  mass  of 
dull  color.    If,  then,  we  had  a  bright  and  a  dark 

164 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

mass  of  equal  size  the  bright  mass  should  be  put 
on  the  shorter  lever  arm,  that  is,  nearer  the  cen- 
ter of  the  picture,  since  its  extra  weight  must  be 
offset  by  short  leverage.  ...  On  a  light  back- 
ground the  more  a  color  approaches  black  the 
greater  its  weight  or  value." 

2.  Quality. — Besides  this  quantitative  balance, 
there  is  a  balance  of  quality  depending  on  the 
phenomenon  of  contrast.  According  to  Ross  ("A 
Theory  of  Pure  Design"),  "Tones,  simply  as 
tones,  disregarding  the  positions,  measures,  and 
shapes  which  may  be  given  to  them,  balance, 
when  the  contrasts  which  they  make  with  the 
ground  tone  upon  which  they  are  placed  are 
equal." 

Says  Gordon:  "When  a  composition  contains 
three  or  more  hues,  then  a  balance  becomes  pos- 
sible. In  a  design  of  white,  gray,  and  black  the 
brightnesses  balance  when  the  gray  is  as  much 
darker  than  the  white  as  the  black  is  darker  than 
the  gray.  The  hues  of  yellow,  greenish  yellow 
and  orange  yellow  would  balance  if  the  greenish 
and  the  orange  yellows  were  removed  by  equal 
degrees  from  pure  yellow.  It  is  also  proper  to 
speak  of  a  balance  of  saturations  when  two  tones 
vary  by  equal  degrees  of  saturation  from  a 
ground  tone." 

165 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

So  much  for  the  feeling  tone  of  form  and  ar- 
rangement. It  is  impossible  in  the  time  at  our 
disposal  to  illustrate  each  of  these  facts  in  the 
concrete  field  of  advertising.  The  composer  or 
designer  must  himself  make  the  applications. 
But  the  propriety  or  impropriety  of  a  given  form 
ought  to  be  fairly  obvious  if  the  foregoing  prin- 
ciples are  borne  in  mind.  Thus  the  writer  recalls 
an  advertisement  for  beds  and  mattresses  in 
which  the  composer  sought  to  convey  an  atmos- 
phere of  quiet  and  repose.  But  the  effect  was 
utterly  destroyed  by  the  insistent  activity  of  a 
diagonal  line  of  type  and  contrasting  color  which 
ran  across  the  composition.  Moreover,  the  colors 
selected  for  this  appeal  were  not  the  quieting  and 
soothing  blues  and  greens,  but  aggressive  and  ir- 
ritating oranges  and  yellows.  The  best  way  to 
realize  fully  the  importance  of  these  laws  of  feel- 
ing tone  is  to  go  about  looking  for  examples  of 
their  violation. 

The  lines,  forms,  relations,  colors  and  distribu- 
tion of  elements  should  so  far  as  possible  reflect 
the  character  of  the  goods  or  the  mood  desired  in 
the  reader.  A  patent  illustration  of  this  would 
be  the  fact  that  in  selecting  type  faces,  bulk, 
weight,  mass  or  strength  demands  heavy,  strong, 
bold  faced  type,  while  an  appeal  to  feeling  or  emo- 

166 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 


Yarfwaaia  daOrzhdda 

Lentheric,  Varis 


^orfumeur 


220  ^ue  Sdint-Honord 


Hmmnwht 
diem*  Carlo    Ha*H  Jt  fata 
ttomaadir  *  Cataloavr  1  fc»      Cmum/i  ag  Th      I 


Harmonious  Coordination  between   Subject,   Type  and 

Trade-mark 


pair 


tion  should  be  conveyed  by  means  of  artistically 
formed  letters,  shaded  type,  with  free,  flowing 
or  graceful  lines.     Observe  the  accompanying  il- 

Lord  &  Taylor 

Imported  Lace  Curtains 

Arab       Mart*  Antoinette       "Renaissance 
"Brussels  Irish  Point 

600  pairs  at    .     .     $12.50 

Value  $15.00  and  $18.50 

325  pairs  at  $f?-50 

Value  $21.50  and  $2&50 

Point  Arab  and  Italian  Filet 
Lace  Curtains 

■*  $35'°°y  50.00,  75.00,  II5.OO  pair 
UsuaJ  prices  $50.00,  $65.00.  $100.00,  $150.00 

Embroidered  Portieres 

Single  pairs 
Formerly  $40.00  to  $110.00  pair 

et  $20.00    tO      65.OO  pair 
Broadway  U  20th  St. ;  5th  Ave ;  19th  St 

Type  Faces  Suggesting  Refinement  and  Delicacy  of  Texture 

167 


pair 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

lustrations,  which  show  the  effectiveness  of  such 
selection. 


FEELING   TONE   AND   IMAGINATION 

The  feeling  tone  of  a  given  composition  of  read- 
ing matter  and  cut  will  also  depend  somewhat  on 
what  is  called  the  imagery  type  of  the  reader. 
We  can  think  of  objects  even  when  they  are  not 
present  to  our  sense  organs.  Thus  I  can  call  up 
in  my  mind's  eye  more  or  less  vividly  my  boyhood 
home,  and  seem  to  see,  though  more  obscurely 
than  if  I  were  present  on  the  spot,  the  house  and 
barn,  the  grape  arbor,  the  garden,  even  my  little 
bookcase  in  the  library.  I  can  smell  the  honey  in 
the  bee  boxes  and  can  hear  the  general  hum  and 
stir  of  the  hives.  I  can  do  this  because  I  can  call 
up  images  of  these  past  experiences.  Or  by  put- 
ting together  the  images  of  wheels,  sails,  birds, 
ropes,  etc.,  which  I  have  actually  seen  in  the 
past,  I  can  create  in  my  mind's  eye  an  aeroplane 
of  a  pattern  which  has  never  yet  been  con- 
structed. 

Similarly,  if  you  read  the  following  list  of 
words  through  slowly,  you  will  find  that  each 
word  calls  up  some  image  of  the  thing  it  repre- 
sents. 

168 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 


Violin 

Earthquake 

Beefsteak 

Falling  from  a  balloon 

Subway 

Battle 

Cheese 

Caruso 

Surf 

Elevator 

You  will  find,  further,  that  some  of  the  images 
come  quickly,  others  slowly;  some  are  strong  and 
vivid,  others  faint  or  obscure;  some  words  will 
call  up  visual  pictures,  some  auditory,  others  feel- 
ings of  movement,  still  others  tastes,  smells, 
touches,  temperatures,  etc.  You  will  likely  find 
that  in  your  own  case  the  swift  and  vivid  images 
will  all  tend  to  be  of  the  same  type :  visual,  au- 
ditory, etc.,  as  the  case  may  be. 

But  if  you  compare  your  results  with  those  of 
several  of  your  friends  you  will  likely  find  strik- 
ing differences.  One  will  think  of  " earthquake' ' 
in  terms  of  rumbling  noises,  another  in  terms  of 
irregular  and  sudden  tossings  and  movements  of 
his  own  body,  while  still  another  will  see  falling 
buildings,  smoke,  and  frightened  people  in  his 
mind's  eye.  With  respect  to  their  normal  and 
most  vivid  imagery,  people  show  not  universals 
but  types.  And  the  result  of  such  an  experiment 
as  that  above  will  usually  reveal  the  imagery  type 
of  the  reader,  that  is,  it  will  show  what  kinds  of 

169 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

imagery  he  employs  easily,  quickly,  vividly  and 
most  frequently. 

Thus  one  observer  recorded  2,500  of  his  own 
images  during  two  years  of  study  of  the  subject, 
and  recorded  the  following  table: 

TABLE    IX 

Visual 57%  Organic 1% 

Auditory.  . . 20%  Taste 6% 

Olfactory 6%  Motor 3% 

Tactual 4%  Emotional 1% 

Temperature 2% 

The  two  types  that  are  most  pronounced  are 
the  visual  type  and  the  auditory -mo  tor  type. 

Images  of  the  so-called  "lower  senses,"  touch, 
taste,  smell,  temperature,  etc.,  are  both  slow  and 
weak  as  well  as  infrequent  with  most  people.  But 
in  describing  such  things  as  clothing,  furniture, 
food  products,  toilet  articles,  fabrics,  soaps,  per- 
fumes, etc.,  the  advertiser  desires  very  much  to 
arouse  such  images.  If  they  can  be  aroused  suc- 
cessfully, they  not  only  add  tremendous  interest 
to  the  advertisement  itself,  but  they  may  actually 
constitute  selling  points  for  the  article  described. 
This  will  be  especially  true  of  all  appeals  made 
over  the  short  circuit — all  appeals  to  the  appetite, 
the  instincts,  the  feelings  and  emotions  of  the 
prospective  purchaser.  And  it  is  precisely  with 
such  articles  as  those  mentioned  above  that  the 

170 


REELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

feeling  appeal  seems  to  be  most  effective — articles 
which  contribute  toward  personal  comfort,  con- 
venience, pleasure  and  satisfaction,  and  which  yet 
do  not  involve  any  great  expenditure.  It  is  well, 
then,  to  point  out  the  ways  in  which  these  images 
may  be  most  effectively  aroused. 

1.  Words. — It  is  difficult  to  arouse  images  of 
touch,  taste,  smell,  temperature,  appetite,  etc.,  by 
means  of  words.  But  it  can  be  accomplished  if 
the  words  are  chosen  carefully  for  their  poetic 
quality  and  applied  with  a  certain  moderate  pro- 
fusion and  cumulative  effect.  The  poetic  quali- 
ties of  words  depend  on  two  chief  factors. 

(a)  Their  phonic  composition. — Certain  combi- 
nations of  oral  sounds  are  in  themselves  agree- 
able, and  the  advertising  writer  should  develop  a 
delicate  sense  for  the  feeling  tone  of  sound  com- 
binations. Compare,  for  instance,  the  auditory 
distastefulness  of  the  words  in  the  first  column 
with  the  agreeableness  of  those  in  the  second. 

I  II 

Tootsie  Eolls  Sapolio 

Lemon  Squash  Ivory 

Waw-waw  Sauce  Electroline 

Bootz  Cordial  Clover  Farms 

Beakes  Dairy  Crystal  Domino 

Stink  Spearmint 

Foot-Eazer  Shakamaxon 

171 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

This  matter  of  phonic  feeling  tone  can  be  best 
studied  by  using  words  in  a  foreign  language, 
whose  meanings  are  unknown.  The  elements  of 
association  and  poetic  usage  are  thus  eliminated, 
and  striking  results  are  secured.  Thus  a  French 
woman  is  reported  as  having  said  that  "cellar 
door"  is  the  most  pleasing  of  English  words. 

(b)  Besides  arousing  the  feeling  tone  due  to 
phonetic  composition,  words  may  be  pleasant  or 
unpleasant  because  of  associations  which  cluster 
around  them.  These  associations  are  largely  due 
to  literary  usage,  though  this  usage  will  usually 
be  found  to  depend  on  simple  psychological  facts 
due  to  the  quality,  composition,  origin  or  history 
of  the  words  themselves.  Thus  there  tends  to 
be,  on  the  whole,  a  certain  set  of  words  which, 
while  conversationally  satisfactory,  are  felt  to  be 
inappropriate  for  use  in  literary  composition. 
And  even  in  the  language  of  writing,  as  distinct 
from  language  of  conversation,  certain  words  and 
groups  of  words  seem  to  be  sacred  to  poetry,  ro- 
mance and  song.  Compare,  with  this  idea  in 
mind,  the  two  following  columns  of  words. 


I 

Horse 

II 

Steed 

Girl 

172 

Maiden 

FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

Writing  Scripture 

Book  Volume 

Candy  Sweet-meat 

Jump  Leap 

Hogs  Swine 

Light  Ignite 

The  factors  involved  here  are  too  complex  for 
brief  discussion.  It  must  suffice  to  point  out  that 
the  image-power  of  words  depends  largely  on 
their  feeling  tone.  An  appreciation  of  this  feel- 
ing tone  must  come  from  literary  training  rather 
than  from  scientific  experiment. 

2.  Pictures. — A  peculiar  thing  about  these  im- 
ages from  the  lower  senses  is  that,  although  they 
are  not  easily  aroused  directly  by  words,  they 
come  rather  easily  and  vividly  when  a  visual  im- 
age or  impression  is  present  to  help  them  into 
consciousness.  Consequently,  the  most  effective 
way  of  producing  them  is  by  means  of  suggestive 
pictures  of  tasteful  scenes  associated  with  the  ar- 
ticle, or  by  a  tempting  array  of  pictures  of  the 
objects  themselves,  in  a  setting  which  itself  pos- 
sesses agreeable  feeling  tone. 

The  important  thing  here  is  the  necessity  of 
avoiding  disagreeable  images  or  negative  sugges- 
tions, either  in, 

173 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

1.  The  picture  itself. 

2.  The  reading  matter. 

3.  The  name  or  brand  mark. 

4.  The  adjacent  advertisements. 

5.  Chance  associations. 

These  points  can  be  best  illustrated  by  giving  in- 
stances of  their  violation. 

Don't  use  anything  but 


If  you  wish  for  a  really  dis- 
Mouthwash  jnfecting    water    for   the 

laoioids        mo||th  an(J  the  teeth 

Testimonials  from  all  circles  of  society. 
Obtainable   on   board  the  Lloyd  Steamers. 

ROBERT    HOHMANN,    pharmaceutical    preparations, 
Magdeburg-Westerhiisen. 

Inappropriate  Feeling  Tone  May  in  Some  Cases  Be  Provoked 

by  This   Advertisement 

1.  The  picture  of  a  guest  at  a  restaurant  table 
refusing  a  substitute  for  some  article  the  name 
of  which  appears  nearby  in  bold  type  is  likely  to 
associate  the  act  of  rejection  with  the  very  article 
advertised. 

2.  The  suggestions  of  substitutes,  even  in  the 
nature  of  warning,  is  considered  in  general  to  be 
a  bad  method  psychologically.  It  calls  up  extrin- 
sic, foreign  imagery,  in  the  place  of  relevant  pic- 
tures. 

174 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

3.  The  third  point  is  constantly  violated  by  ad* 
vertisements  which  associate  disagreeable  words, 
objects  or  people  with  the  commodity,  as 

Slimy  fish  with  medicine 

Guinea  pigs  with  toilet  preparations 

Tramps  with  soap  and  lotions 

Cattle  with  tobacco 

Frogs  with  coffee 

A  dirty  floor  with  soup 

Butterflies  wdth  sugar  etc. 


Feeling  Tone  of  Associations  Inappropriately  Used.  Cover  of 
a  folder  issued  by  SchonJand  Bros.,  sausage  manufacturers  in 
Portland,  Me.      (From  Advertising  and  Selling,  Dec,  1910.) 


4.  Writers  have  frequently  pointed  out  the  fu- 
tility of  placing  a  breakfast  food  advertisement 
alongside  one  for  an  asthma  cure,  that  of  a  deli- 
cate dessert  next  to  a  remedy  for  eczema,  etc. 
The  important  principle  here  is  that  the  feeling 
tone  of  an  appeal  depends  not  entirely  on  our 
reaction  to  that  appeal  alone,  but  also  on  our 

175 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

general  mood  at  the  time.  And  this  general  mood 
is  easily  influenced  by  adjacent  advertisements, 
recent  experiences,  etc. 

5.  In  illustration  of  the  role  of  chance  associa- 
tions we  may  instance  two  facts: 

A.  An  article  may  be  surrounded  with  a  favor- 
able atmosphere,  a  favorable  association  cluster, 
by  utilizing  an  atmosphere  already  created  for 
another  purpose.  Thus  our  attitude  toward  a 
Yale  bicycle  or  a  Yale  pipe  is  influenced  by 
what  we  already  know  of  the  efficiency  of  Yale 
locks  or  of  the  prowess  and  reliability  of  Yale's 
football  team.  Arcadia  Mixture  smoking  to- 
bacco has  been  sold  to  many  a  smoker  because  of 
the  delightful  atmosphere  previously  drawn  about 
the  name  in  J.  M.  Barrie's  "My  Lady  Nicotine." 
There  may  be  certain  unethical  features  involved 
in  such  utilization  of  borrowed  atmosphere,  but 
the  psychological  basis  for  its  success  remains, 
nevertheless. 

B.  Synesthesia. — An  interesting  phenomenon 
which  may  some  day  become  of  concrete  use  to 
the  advertisement  writer  is  the  fact  that  certain 
sensations  are  often  closely  associated  with  sen- 
sations from  quite  different  sense  departments. 
Thus  sounds  of  musical  instruments,  vowels,  syl- 
lables, may  be  seen  to  be  colored.     One  man  on 

176 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

record  sees  consonants  as  purplish  black,  while 
the  vowels  vary  in  color.  "U"  is  a  light  dove 
color,  "e"  is  pale  emerald,  "a"  is  yellow,  etc. 
Thinking  of  the  word  " Tuesday,' 9  the  first  part 
seems  light  gray-green  and  the  latter  part  yel- 
low. 

In  some  cases  colors  accompany  the  sensations 
of  taste  and  smell.  Salt,  for  instance,  is  de- 
scribed by  one  observer  as  dull  red,  bitter  as 
brown,  sour  as  green  or  greenish-blue,  and  sweet 
as  clear  bright  red.  One  observer  sees  the  taste 
of  meat  as  red  and  brown,  Graham  bread  as  a 
rich  red,  and  all  ice  creams — except  chocolate  and 
coffee — as  blue.  To  another  observer  the  sound 
of  the  word  "intelligence"  tastes  like  fresh  sliced 
tomatoes  and  "interest"  like  stewed  tomatoes ! 

These  synesthesias,  as  they  are  called,  seem, 
however,  to  be  so  individual  and  personal  that  no 
two  people  are  likely  to  agree  on  them  by  pres- 
ent methods  of  inquiry.  If  there  were  more  gen- 
eral laws  there  could  be  much  clever  and  subtle 
selection  of  appropriate  colors,  words,  etc.  At 
present,  however,  no  such  laws  can  be  announced. 

STRAIN     AND     RELAXATION 

In  discussing  the  suggestive  character  of  hori- 
zontal and  diagonal  lines  we  have  already  had 

177 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

occasion  to  refer  to  feelings  of  strain  and  relaxa- 
tion. Feelings  of  this  sort  are  of  particular  im- 
portance in  another  connection,  that  of  the  legi- 
bility of  type  when  an  appeal  is  presented  to  the 
sense  of  sight.     Many  an  advertisement  fails  to 


THE  HOTEL  SEVILLE  OFFERS  VERY 
DESIRABLE  SUITES  OF  ANY  NUMBER  OF 
ROOMS,  WITH  ALL  MODERN  I  M  P  R  0  V.E  - 
MENTS.  THE  ROOMS  ARE  OF  VARIOUS 
SIZES,  EQUIPPED  WITH  LARGE  CLOS- 
ETS, ARE  WELL  FURNISHED  AND'WELL 
ARRANGED.  THE  TABLE  (A  LA  CARTE) 
AND  ITS  APPOINTMENTS  ARE  STRICTLY 
FIRST  CLASS.  WELL-TRAINED  WHITE 
SERVANTS  RENDER  STRICTLY  UP-TO- 
DATE  SERVICE.  ROOMS  AND  SUITES  ARE 
RENTED  BY  THE  DAY,  BY  THE  SEASON 
AND  BY  THE  YEAR.  A  VERY  QUIET  YET 
CENTRAL  LOCATION,  APPEALING  PAR- 
TICULARLY   TO    PEOPLE    OF    REFINEMENT 

MADISON    AVENUE    AND  EDW.  PURCHAS, 

TWENTY-NINTH   STREET.  MANAGER. 


Strain 


influence  simply  because  it  is  so  difficult  to  read 
that  few  individuals  take  the  pains  to  decipher 
it.  The  Hotel  Seville  announcement  shows  an  ad- 
vertisement of  this  sort,  which  has  caught  my  eye 
many  times,  but  which  to  this  day  I  have  not  yet 
read,  nor  shall  I  ever  read  it  through.  Compare 
this  hotel   announcement  with  that  of  the   Bel- 

178 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

norcl.  The  comfortable  legibility  of  the  latter 
contrasts  strongly  with  the  hopelessness  of  the 
former.    The  former  is  an  example  of  strain,  the 

CThe  BELNORD  is  built  in  the  form  of  a  hollow 
square,  enclosing  the  largest  apartment  house  court  in 
existence.  Every  room  is  an  outside  room.  Each 
suite,  7  to  11  rooms,  includes  numerous  modern  de- 
vices for  extra  comfort  and  convenience* 

CThe  absence  of  noise  and  vibration  has  been 
achieved  by  locating  the  engine  rooms  under  the  cen- 
tral court  and  not  under  any  part  of  the  building 
'proper.     Yearly  rentals  begin  at  $2,400. 

CA  visit  to  the  BELNORD  will  save  you  many  fa- 
tiguing days  of  "apartment  hunting."  Interested 
parties  are  cordially  invited. 

W.  H.  DQLSON  &  CO..  Agents 

Office  on  the  Premises 
2364  Broadway,  at  86th  Si,  x  Telephone  J 0400— River. 

Relaxation 

latter  an  example  of  relaxation,  both  being  de- 
pendent on  the  legibility  of  the  appeal.  In  this 
connection  it  may  be  useful  to  point  out  some  of 
the  factors  which  make  for  legibility  of  printed 
matter. 

179 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

1.  Favorable  Length  of  Printed  Lines. — Experi- 
mental studies  of  the  way  in  which  the  eye  be- 
haves  in  reading  show  that  the   whole   line   of 

Showing  how  asphalt  is  dug  from  Trinidad  Lake  and  transported  to  shipboard  lor  Genasco  Rooting 

Go  to  the  bottom  of  the  roofing  question 
— if  you  want  to  save  money  on  your  roof. 

Don't  be  caught  by  mere  looks  and  mysterious 
terms.     Find  out  what  the  roofing  is  made  of. 

And  the  time  to  find  out  is  before  you  buy — it  is 
often  costly  to  find  out  afterward. 


G 


enasco 


the  Trinidad-Lake-Asphalt  Roofing 


is  made  of  natural  asphalt. 

The  difference  between  nat: 
ural  asphalt  and  manufactured 
or  artificial  "asphalts"  is  great. 
Natural  Trinidad  Lake  asphalt 
contains  natural  oils  which  give 
it  lasting  life.  They  are  sealed 
in  Genasco  and  stay  there  to 
defend  it  permanently  against 
rain,  sun,  wind,  heat,  and  cold. 

Artificial  asphalts  are  resid- 
ual products.     Same  way  with 

The  Kant-leak  KJeet  is  tlie  lasting  waterproof  fastening  for  seams — prevents 
nail-leaks,  and  docs  away  uvith  unsightly  cement. 

Ask  your  dealer  for  either  Genasco  mineral  or  smooth  surface  roofings  with 
Kant-leak  Kleets  packed  in  the  roll.  Fully  guaranteed.  Write  for  the  Good  Root 
Guide  Book  and  samples. 

THE  BARBER  ASPHALT  PAVING  COMPANY 


coal  tar.  They  are  mixed  with 
oils  which  makes  them  pliable 
for  a  while,  but  the  oils  evapo- 
rate quickly  when  exposed  to 
sun  and  air;  they  leave  the  roof- 
ing lifeless,  an.d  it  cracks  and 
leaks. 

When  you  get  Genasco  you 
can  be  sure  of  roofing  that  lasts. 
And  roofing  that  lasts  is  the 
only  kind  worth  having. 


New  York 


Largest  producers  o!   asphalt,   and  largest 
maaulacturers  of  ready  rooting  in  the  world. 

PHILADELPHIA 
San  Francisco 


Chicago 


Cro»»-»ection  Genatco  Model  Roofing 

rr<^^'ri;^^7y^^rcsr^\^^?v^Ki  Crushed  Quart* 

■  llll  illl— HlMlir  if  !■■!■  I  I     I   Lake  Asphalt 


aSrB^tSPOrSSSIS 


Asphah  saturated  Wnul  Felt 
Trinidad  Lake  Asphalt 
Asphalt-saturated  Burlap 
Tritiida,!  Lake  Asphalt 


The  Use  of  Lower  Case  Letters  and  of  Favorable  Length  of 
Line.  Reading  matter  made  legible  and  more  likely  both  to 
attract   and  to  hold  the  reader's  attention. 


printed  matter  is  not  seen  at  once  and  as  a  whole 
by  the  eye.  Nor  are  the  separate  letters  each  fix- 
ated in  succession,  nor  are  the  successive  words 
even    examined    one    by    one.      The    eye    fixates 

180 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

three  or  four  points  in  reading  the  line,  these 
points  falling  where  they  may — now  in  the  middle 
of  a  word,  now  at  the  beginning  or  end,  now  be- 
tween two  words.  When  the  printing  is  legible  a 
given  line  thus  requires  few  movements  for  the 
comprehension  of  the  words — a  few  fixations  will 
cover  the  whole  of  the  line.  But  when  the  print- 
ing is  difficult  to  read  clearly,  the  separate  letters 
or  words  difficult  to  discriminate  from  each  other, 
more  fixations  are  required,  and  these  extra  fixa- 
tions mean  strain  and  fatigue.  The  most  comfor- 
table length  of  line,  for  ordinary  printing,  is  found 
to  be  about  three  and  one-half  inches. 

2.  Appropriate  Spacing  of  Letters,  Words  and 
Lines. — The  spacing  used  should  indicate  the 
natural  unities  of  the  material  presented.  Thus 
the  space  between  letters  making  up  a  word 
should  be  less  than  the  width  of  the  letters  them- 
selves, while  the  space  between  adjacent  words 
should  be  greater  than  either  of  these  two  dis- 
tances. The  space  between  sentences  should  be 
somewhat  greater  still.  If  a  number  of  lines  are 
intended  to  belong  together  as  a  unit  or  para- 
graph, the  spacing  between  the  various  lines 
should  be  somewhat  less  than  the  width  of  the 
lines  themselves  (as  measured  by  the  height  of 
the  letters).    If  this  rule  is  not  followed,  ihe  space 

181 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 


between  paragraphs  should  be  then  increased,  in 
order  to  suggest  the  unity  of  the  paragraphs.    In- 


FRANKL1N  AUTOMOBILES  ARE  MADE -IN  FIVE  CHASSIS  SIZES, 
TWO  "FOURS"  AND  THREE  •'SIXES'-,  WITH  THIRTEEN  STYLES 
OF  OPEN  AND  ENCLOSED  BODIES.  THE  EQUIPMENT  OF  ALL 
OPEN  TYPE  BODIES  INCLUDES  WIND  SHIELD  AND  TOP. 
PRICES  ARE  F.  O.  B.  FACTORY. 

25-HORSE  POWER.  FOUR-CYLINDER   MODEL  G  TOURING  CAR,  S2000. 

MODEL  G    RUNABOUT,    1SJ-IORSE  POWER,.  FOUR-CYLINDER.   S}6S0, 

SIXCYL1NDER.  30HORSE-POWER  MODEL  M.  S2S0O.  FOR  TOURING 
CAR.  TORPEDO-PHAETON  OR  ROADSTER,.  .  v 

SIX-CYLIMDER.  .39-HORSE-POWER  MODEL  D,  J3500  FOR  TOURING 
CAS'Cfe  TORPEDO-PHAETON.    .'      ■  ''*;  _'" 

SIX-CYLINDER.    38-HORSE-POWER  .MODEL    H    SEVEN.PASSENGER 

■  TOURING,  SILVERTOWN  CORD  TIRES.  $4000. 

MODEL  H  LIMOUSINE.  $5000.  23HQRSE-POWER  .LIMOUSINE  OR 
LANDAULET.  J3S00.  i 

FRANKLIN  COMMERCIAL  CARS  INCLUDE  PNEUMATIC-TIRED  TRUCKS. 
LICHT  DELIVERY  WAGONS,  PATROLS,  AMBULANCES,  OMNIBUSES. 
AN'D  TAXICABS.  •.""-- 

BEAUTY  OF  DESIGN,  LUXURIOUS  .RIDING.  LIGHT  WEIGHT. 
GREAT  TIRE  ECONOMY.  ARE  DISTINGUISHING  FRANKLIN 
FEATURES.  THE  MOST  NOTABLE  FEATUREr  HOWEVER,  IS 
THE  AIR-COOLED  MOTOR  AND  RECENT  IMPROVEMENTS  HAVE 
MADE  IT  THE  MOST  REMARKABLE  DEVELOPMENT  IN  AUTO. 
MOBILE  MOTOR  DESIGN.  WHEN  WRITING  FOR  OUR  NEW 
CATALOGUE  ASK  ALSO  FOR. "THE  FRANKLIN  ENGINE". 

FRANKLIN  AUTOMOBILE  COMPANY 

SYRACUSE  NY  f 


■xmxmmmMumm&k itmsmsma^Jtm** tm  u m  «m slct^-vajs saws ^soons*^^. — .^, — .-. — ■■   --■.i.v.ag 


Illegibility  Resulting  from  the  Exclusive  Use  of  Capital 
Letters  in  Reading  Matter  Designed  to  Hold  the  Reader's 
Attention, 

dentation  of  paragraphs  and  even  of  every  other 
line  in  the  printed  matter  is  found  to  facilitate  the 
process  of  reading. 

3.  We  have  already  seen  that  we  tend  to  find 

182 


FEELING    TONE    OF    CONTENT 

meaning  in  the  tops  rather  than  in  the  bases  of 
things.      This    is    particularly    true    in    reading 


In  ail  sections 
the  result  the  same 


CfeanEVENffeat 
at  LEAST  Cost 


[  TNDER  all  conditions'  and  la  an  sections,  "Under- 
.  *"'  feed  results  are  happily  the  same  —  o/ear>,  .- 
even  heat  at  teastpoaaible  cost.'  Just  tmagine: 
heating" a  teh-roam  bouse  In  Michigan  .for  S25, 
This  Is  alt  It  cost  I.  A-Rees,  227  Twelfth  Avenue, 
Grand  Rapids,  to  operate  b?s  Underfeed  Boiler  all 
lost  winter.  And^e  adds;  "ft-ts  very  easy -to  take 
care  of,  thoroughly  coasnaWs  coal  and  makes  very  • 
few  ashes."  '  '-     ■     —  * 


Following  the  municipal  example  of  Minneapolis 
In  beating  her  shelter  houses,  New  York  hasalso 
installed  Underfeed  boilers  in  Zoological  Garden 
Buildings,  because  Underfeed  heat  is  cheapest  and 
best.  Even  in  Saskatchewan.  Manitoba  and 
farthest-North  Canadian  provinces,  despite  freight 
and  duty,  the  great  economy  of  Underfeed  main- 
tenance has  earned  for  it  recognition  as  the  most 
profitable  heating  investment. 


^  saving  of  one-half  to  two-thirds  of  coal  bills  each  year  is  assured  6y 

The 

Peek- 


suvmg  vi  uriv-imu  iv  iwu-uuma  vi  ivut  imia  ;ui«  j/kui  i*  unuicu  vjr 

-Williamson  Underfeed 


HEATING       1?   WARM  AIR    "       VJ  STEAM-HOT  WATER 

systems  TUimAGES -BOILERS 


Underfeed  fuel— pea  and  buckwheat  sizes  of  hard  and  eoft 
ordinary  furnaceBand  boiler*; 


.■aJ  and  chcapt#t  stack— would  anir-thrr  flro  in 

Because  of  this  vast  saving  in  tbo  "coal  feci  from 

beU)W""pla*k,  the  Underfeed  ADDS  to  thareiitinj;andselliDg  vaJueof  urij/buildin, 

'.SmoVc'nrtd  mihes  -  ■*«*  wriste    in  Othor    Senate  VaJtrtttd  Det 
plant*  —  wft  pass  through -the     flame*,    arc 
<«i><umr<1    and  turm-d    into    hru 
The  f&v  nshe*  Arc  rn 


tWnuWt 


unils  —  more 
■  ■  I  !■■  v  v'-"v  i-.: 


Be  **itc  to\&  «et  TOURVopy  of  lb*  Under- 
,feeel  Furn»«e.  ©ixjkjtt  or  Boiler  Catalog.  arid 
fo-c-eimilcS  of  mftjiy  :<■'  limohifllii..  Use  coupon. 
P!.i."  of  our  EiitriMPiinK  Corp*  ore  FRflFl. 
Name  local  dealer  i 


?B?k-WILLIAMSON  CO, 


x  with  whom  you  prefer  to  deal, 

306W.  Fifth  St. 


CINCINNATI,  O. 


Farnsir  r  DenK-r  <  -Plumber*  aw!  Hardware  Dealers— Write  lor  our  NEW  »•»> ■■  r  or-  You  Sales  PU» 


Sesid  Gouj>on  Toddy 
one)    l*cam    StOHf  to 

SJiVE 

o^-our 

CoalBHI. 


^.WILLIAMSON  CO 


Fill  in.  cut  out  and  mail  TODAY. 

306  W.  Fifth  Street,       Cincinnati,  Ohio 

t  would  like  to  know  mere,  obnuthowtocut  down  the  costofrjo?  OoaJ 
Bills  trombOS  to«6H%.    Bend  me— FUEJE— 

UNDERFEED  t^STiSsSSt±=z 

(indicate  bf  X  BoekJej  ymj  fictile}' 


iVame 

Poatoffice.. 


Street..  .„ «—.„. 

v*     Stat* „ , 

..Ntne  detlfr  with  whom  juo  ptffrrto  dctl. 


Illegibility  and  Strain  Are  Produced  by  Too  Great  Variety 
of  Type  Faces,  Interrupted  Lines  and  Ineffective  Spac- 
ing. All  of  these  make  rhythmical  movements  and  adjust- 
ments impossible. 


printed  matter.  The  eye  tends  to  follow  the  up- 
per part  of  the  line  of  letters,  and  the  upper  parts 
of  the  type  faces  are  the  parts  which  show  variety 
and  differentiation  as  between  the  different  let- 

183 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 


ters.    Partly  for  this  reason  the  "lower  case"  let- 
ters are  more  easily  perceived  and  read  than  are 


®w8aliwfnflBto"«r.8imio 


r^ 


it  v.. 


'C-' 


E* 


"fi 


;-> 


Good  Music  For  Your  Guests 

"  Thfe  best  of  fine  music,  im-Iuiihu; 
■'everyhody's  favorite,', '  .it  \-<>n- 
stayt  command.  . 


Wyt  ^alfcftrin  jplapcr#tano 

Of  marvelous  simplicity  and  accomplishment ;  a  mechanism  cnahl 
you  to  reproduce,  photographically,  every  subtlety  of  an  artist's  style, — 
to  read  into <he  iines  your  own  interpretation  of  the  composer's  meaning*: 

The 'distinctive  character  of  the  Baldwin  Piano  exacted  a  "Player   ' 

partictilarTscope  and  refinement ;  one  capable  oi/ul/v  exploiting  Baldwjii-tc 
it      '      .  • 

Baldwin  player-mechanism  is  the  mate  ideal  of  the  Baldwin  Piano. 

,     ;'   The  result  is  ,"*  new  kind  of  player  music"   in'  which  the  perfor 
enjoyment  is  spontaneous  and  personal,' the  tonalities  beautiful,  the  art 
illusion  complete.  _•  .  •"       - 

L'-i  ua  send  you  the  Jiuv>k  of  the  ' 
BAI.IJWtN    PLAYKK- PIANO 


ler  s 
i.stic 


CINCINNATI 


NNAT! 

I*J    *r»H    ...frill    .\» 


Xi3  bo  WabmlvAvj!.-  e»  i:.  3414  St  A 

InrHjHinflotf* 

IKN.  fvnn'nSl. 


1 L 


Illustrating  the  Ease  of  Reading  and  Feeling  of  Relaxation 
Produced  by  the  Use  of  Lower  Case  Letters  and  by  the 
Presence  of  Appropriate  Spacing. 

capital  letters.  Franklin  Automobile  Company's 
advertisement  illustrates  the  difficulty  of  reading 
printed  matter  composed  entirely  of  capitals.  In 
the  case  of  the  Peck- Williamson  Company's  ad- 

184 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

vertisement  the  illegibility  is  also  partly  a  matter 
of  faulty  spacing.  The  Baldwin  Company's  ad- 
vertisement combines  the  ease  of  "lower  case" 
letters  with  favorable  and  appropriate  spacing. 
It  also  shows  the  ease  with  which  the  "lower 
case"  letters  are  read. 

4.  Ease  of  reading  is  interfered  with  by  too 
great  a  variety  of  type  faces.  Thus  the  "Under- 
feed" advertisement  is  most  illegible,  partly  be- 
cause of  the  lack  of  unity  and  organization,  but 
largely  also  because  the  thirty  different  kinds  of 
letters  and  type  faces  occurring  on  a  single  page 
call  for  excessive  and  uncomfortable  changes  in 
adjustment  at  irregular  intervals.  One  of  the 
things  which  most  facilitates  easy  reading  is  the 
possibility  of  falling  into  rhythmical  habits  of  eye 
movement  across  the  page  and  back  again,  and 
rhythmical  changes  of  adjustment  of  the  optical 
apparatus  from  moment  to  moment. 

5.  A  fifth  factor  of  importance  is  the  fact  that 
not  all  type  faces  of  the  same  size  are  equally 
legible.  The  type  faces  which  happen  to  have 
been  most  used  in  printed  advertisements  turn 
out,  under  experimental  conditions,  to  be  the  least 
legible  of  a  large  group  of  faces  and  styles  which 
were  studied.  The  table  on  page  187  gives  the 
legibility  of  each  of  nine  different  faces,  lower 

185 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

case  letters  only,  when  these  letters  occur  grouped 
as  in  words.  The  legibility  was  measured  by  de- 
termining the  maximum  distance,  in  daylight  il- 
lumination, at  which  the  letters  could  be  cor- 
rectly identified.  Each  letter  of  the  alphabet  was 
tested  12  times,  twice  by  each  of  6  observers,  and 
the  results  of  the  26  letters  were  averaged  to  give 
the  final  measure  of  the  type  face  as  a  whole. 
The  measures  in  the  table  give  the  number  of 
centimeters  at  which  the  given  type  face  can,  on 
the  average,  be  read.  All  letters  used  were  what 
are  known  as  10  point  letters,  the  faces  all  being 
Roman,  no  bold  or  italic  faces  being  used.  Tables 
for  upper  case  letters  and  for  lower  case  letters, 
for  16  different  faces,  the  letters  occurring  both 
in  groups  and  in  isolation,  may  be  found  in  an 
article  by  Roethlein  in  the  American  Journal  of 
Psychology  of  January,  1912.  Legibility  was 
found  to  vary  little  with  the  form  of  the  type,  but 
to  depend  chiefly  on  the  size,  width  of  line,  and 
amount  of  white  space  exposed  between  the  let- 
ters. The  faces  differ  less  when  the  letters  are 
grouped  than  they  do  when  the  letters  are  ob- 
served in  isolation.  And  it  must  be  said  here  that 
even  these  measurements  are  by  no  means  com- 
plete statements  of  the  legibility  of  the  type  faces 
when  used  in  printing,  because  much  of  our  read- 

186 


FEELING  TONE  OF  CONTENT 

ing  is  done,  not  by  perceiving  the  separate  let- 
ters which  make  np  the  words,  but  very  largely 
by  recognizing  the  words  as  wholes,  by  means  of 
their  characteristic  "word  forms.' ' 

Order  of  Legibility', 
lype  race  cm%  distance 

News  Gothic 166 

Cushing  Old  Style 165 

Century  Old  Style 162 

Cheltenham    Wide 159 

Century  Expanded 159 

Scotch    Roman 151 

Bullfinch 150 

Caslon 149 

Cushing  Monotype 144 

Illustrations  of  these  faces  may  be  found  in  many  manuals  of 
reference  and  data  books  used  by  printers  and  advertising  men. 

6.  A  final  factor  which  may  be  mentioned  as 
contributing  toward  relaxation  in  reading  printed 
matter  is  the  background  on  which  the  letters 
occur.  A  maximum  brightness  difference  between 
background  and  type  makes  for  easy  perception. 
When  colored  background  or  type  is  used,  the 
same  rule  holds,  for  it  is  not  the  difference  in 
color  as  such,  but  the  difference  in  the  brightness 
values  of  the  colors  used  which  is  effective.  We 
have  already  had  occasion,  when  discussing  con- 
trast as  an  attention  device,  to  explain  the  greater 
attention  value  of  black  on  white,  as  contrasted 
with  white  on  black,  and  to  point  out  that  we  are 

187 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

not  concerned  there  with  a  real  difference  in  legi- 
bility. There  is  some  difficulty  in  reading  printed 
matter  which  does  not  differ  sufficiently  from  the 
brightness  of  the  background  on  which  it  appears. 


CHAPTER   XI 

THE    THIRD    TASK:    FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

Clearly  the  work  of  an  appeal  does  not  stop 
with  attracting  attention  or  even  with  holding  it 
until  the  copy  is  read.  Rival  appeals  will  be 
operating,  and,  if  they  are  at  all  effective,  will 
have  a  certain  persistence  in  the  consciousness  of 
the  reader.  Evidently  an  essential  function  is 
that  of  being  able  to  so  impress  the  reader  that 
in  a  later  moment,  when  there  is  need  felt  for  an 
article  of  the  general  type,  this  particular  brand 
will  suggest  itself  as  the  first  of  its  kind.  This 
recurrence  of  a  previous  idea  we  call  a  recollec- 
tion Now,  ideas  do  not  spring  up  spontaneously 
in  the  mind.  So  far  as  we  can  see,  an  idea  is 
always  introduced  by  virtue  of  its  connection  with 
a  preceding  thought.  If  in  a  moment  of  need  the 
specific  name  of  an  article  designatec1  to  fill  that 
need  is  thought  of,  this  happens  because  that 
particular  naiue  has  been,  as  we  say,  associated, 
linked  up  with  the  situation  of  need  more  firmly 
than  any  other  name  for  a  similar  article.    This 

189 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

dominance  of  ideas  is  what  we  are  concerned 
with  in  the  psychology  of  association.  Ideas  oc- 
cur by  virtue  of  previous  connections,  and  these 
connections  are  determined  by  definite  laws,  can 
be  brought  about  and  facilitated  by  specific  de- 
vices, or  weakened  by  failure  to  conform  to  these 
rules. 

We  shall  be  better  able  to  understand  the  laws 
of  association  by  knowing  something  of  the  ner- 
vous processes  on  which  they  depend.  Associa- 
tion takes  place  when  nervous  energy  from  one 
center  flows  out  into  related  centers,  causing  a 
corresponding  related  consciousness.  This  over- 
flowing of  energy  must  take  place  along  a  nervous 
pathway,  and  this  pathway  must  be  formed  in  the 
nervous  tissue  before  the  exchange  is  direct.  The 
general  rule  is  that  energy  radiates  out  in  all 
directions  from  a  center  so  long  as  all  the  pos- 
sible paths  have  equal  resistance.  Now,  if  two 
adjacent  centers  should  discharge  at  the  same 
moment,  there  would  be  a  pathway  between  them 
which  would  be  doubly  excited,  and  hence  its  re- 
sistance would  be  lowered.  Thus  suppose  three 
processes,  A,  B,  C,  to  have  occurred  at  the  same 
time.  Such  a  pathway  will  be  at  once  formed  be- 
tween the  centers  corresponding  to  these  proc- 
esses.   Whenever  either  of  the  three  occurs  at  a 

190 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

later  moment  it  will  tend  to  excite  the  centers 
corresponding  to  each  of  the  others.  Every  ele- 
ment thus  tends  to  bring  up  again  the  whole  of 
which  it  was  previously  a  part.  Thus  the  sight  of 
either  of  the  three  words,  "Company,"  "Bos- 
ton "  or  "  Rubber ' '  will  tend  to  remind  the  reader 
of  the  whole  phrase,  "Boston  Rubber  Company. " 
Three  primary  laws  may  be  laid  down  here : 

1.  Every  nervous  current  leaves  traces  of  its 
pathway. 

2.  This  trace  facilitates  the  passage  of  sub- 
sequent impulses  over  the  same  pathway. 

3.  Such  a  pathway  tends  to  drain  off  energy 
from  other  centers  which  may  be  active 
only  in  a  random  way. 

This  process  of  linkage  between  the  two  ideas 
such  as  "Boston"  and  "Rubber"  is  what  we 
mean  by  association. 

PRINCIPLES     OF     CONNECTION" 

There  are  two  fundamental  principles  of  asso- 
ciation which  advertisements  persistently  and 
flagrantly  violate.  In  natural  thinking  there  are 
two  laws  that  control  the  play  of  our  ideas.  Both 
laws  are  true  in  general.     But  in  order  for  the 

191 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

advertiser  to  be  effective,  he  must  set  one  of  these 
laws  against  the  other. 

1.  The  first  law  is  that  we  tend  habitually  to 
think  from  particular  to  general.  If  I  hear  or 
read  "Ingersoll"  I  at  once  think  ' 'watch,"  the 
general  class  of  which  the  "Ingersoll"  is  but  a 
particular.  If  I  hear  "Rambler"  I  think  "bi- 
cycle," "Ditson" — "saws,"  "Maydole" — "ham- 
mers," etc.  Now,  this  is  a  perfectly  natural  ten- 
dency, but  it  is  of  no  use  to  the  advertiser,  who 
wants  us,  not  so  much  to  think  "watch"  when  we 
hear  "Ingersoll,"  as  to  think  "Ingersoll"  when 
we  need  a  watch,  "Cluett"  when  we  need  a  shirt, 
"Burns"  when  the  general  idea  "coal"  is  in  the 
mind.  That  is,  ;v  order  to  attain  his  end,  the  ad- 
vertiser must  force  us  to  violate  a  fundamental 
law  of  thinking  and  to  go  not  from  "shirt"  to  its 
class  "garment,"  but  down  to  a  particular  shirt 
as  "Cluett." 

Now,  the  strangest  part  of  it  all  is  that  the 
average  advertisement  not  only  fails  to  realize 
this  necessity,  but  even  works  against  itself  by 
failing  to  recognize  the  second  general  law,  the 
forward  law. 

2.  We  tend  to  think  forward  rather  than  back- 
ward. Associations  tend  to  take  their  original 
direction   and   have   only  little   influence   in   the 

192 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

reverse  direction.  You  cannot  tell  me  without 
some  reflection  what  letter  comes  before  the  let- 
ter "I"  in  our  alphabet.  When  you  can,  you  will 
find  that  you  have  recalled  it  by  starting  with 
"A"  and  going  forward.  From  "H"  to  "I"  is  a 
perfectly  natural  transition,  but  from  "I"  to 
"  H  "  is  a  violation  of  the  law.  Similarly  you  can 
tell  me  much  more  quickly  last  names  of  men  with 
given  first  names  than  you  can  the  first  names  of 
a  row  of  last  names.  The  same  is  true  with  a 
line  of  poetry.  The  first  word  calls  up  the  whole 
line,  but  the  last  word,  although  it  has  previously 
existed  in  consciousness  along  with  the  preced- 
ing words,  does  not  tend  to  call  them  up  to  any- 
thing like  the  same  degree.  Subsequent  impulses 
tend  not  only  to  follow  old  pathways,  but  they 
tend  to  follow  them  in  the  direction  of  the  original 
connection.  So  if  I  hear  "  George "  I  tend  at 
once  to  think  " Washington."  But  if  I  hear 
"Washington,"  I  do  not  go  back  to  "George," 
but  forward  to  "monument,"  "square," 
"bridge,"  etc. 

The  reason  for  this  first  principle  is  simply 
that  nervous  energy  tends  to  spread  out  from  the 
centers  of  origin  into  all  related  or  connected  cen- 
ters, thus  calling  into  play  the  whole  class.  The 
reason  for  the  second  law  is  not  clear,  but  we 

193 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

may  be  sure  that  it  lias  some  stable  basis  in  the 
structure  of  the  nervous  pathways. 

Here,  then,  we  have  a  principle  which  can  be 
employed  to  counteract  the  tendency  of  principle  1. 


A  .UNIQUE  KIND  OF  GIFT 

has  come  into  Vogue  for  Christmas,  birthdays,  weddings 
and    other  -occasions  — ia   the    private    reproduction    o 

Family  Portraits  in 

'ths  COPLEY  PRINTS.  Everyone  has  a  daguerreotype,  minktttrs,  or  oid  photo 
graph,  or  a  present-flay  portrait,  of  whish  other  members  ni  the  family  wsttUS  tifc 
to  havs  ropics.  For  tUe  intimacy  of  family  gifts  nothing  couW  have  greater  .oss 
tinrtion.  The  qaatity  ef  reproduction  is  gBMSateej  by  the  hi^rt  reputation  whir! 
tiicC'OPJJlY  PRINTS  have  won  throughout  the  wori'J.       Cor.'esportd'.'ner  invites 


MteiftlSSW 


a-?  &L=;  maspasacij  «  stf"  irftvei'M  fra-;i*;fe.  8«ns£  (lUoWftamUe  ia  any  ottvr  farm,  thsff  wais^ 
(ajyeitfe  «&UErd.  botf.  «  gfe  !»5  f*EBsta«  iV  «k's h.»>e.  fecagnktd  by  irt»r.«iheB*g«lH 
a»  Ihr  bra  (J  art  repnxteriiwB.      to-id  e.mla!  friMM  !>»■  Frema  Gswraaws*.      "Jv«*  I-.JM  suo^tq 

i*  d»,,oac  i«  AaKri.Eo  Art.  HiE*trMta  Oaafaafc  339  eow  (pnaxsSr  »  rundhixA  ei,  A».«r»<j 
all,  intl  for  2S  o-.i»t«  tt.iiai»  a«rpt.;i  Tw&  M«  deSedad  irer)-.  pucW  si  pratu  Uwsr 
*S«i     &S.9G  &*$5&flS.    Ai  w.  stores-  w  «ai  oa  sfipr^Ei   j'»=-  "*'-  -.-.'«*  :;,-;/' 

Curtis  CQ.  Cameron  6S,pi<!re*  Btt!IfSnS  Bostoi 


Forward  Keasoning — Correct  Arrangement 


We  tend  to  think  from  particular  to  general, 
other  things  being  equal.  But,  if  in  reading  an 
advertisement,  our  thought  has  been  repeatedly 
led  from  a  general  to  a  given  particular,  by  the 
composer  putting  the  general  term  first  and  fol- 
lowing it  by  the  particular,  the  second  law  is  able 

194 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

to  offset  the  first.     The  general  rule  should  be, 
then: 


•are  the  accepted  standard' of,  art  reproduction. 
They  rank  with  art'  museums  in  their  influence 
for  good  taste  in  pictures.  Gold  medal  from  the 
French  Government.  Over  a  thousand  subjects 
to  choose  from  in  American  Art.    They  make  the 

BEST  OF  GIFTS 

Illustrated  Catalog,  320  cuts  '.'(practically  a 
handbook  of  American  Art:),  sent  for  25  cents: 

stamps  accepted^;  This  cost  deducted  "from  par- 
Chase  of  the  Prints  themselves.  50,  cents,  to 
$20.00.  '  At  art  store's,  .or  Sent  on  approval, 
-     ISxli H»i tions    for  'schools,  clubs.,  churches,  etc. 

Family  Portraits  done -on  private  order,  from  -  . 

daguerreotypes,  tintypes,  photographs,  iyery,'  etc. 

"VENETIAN  CtlPJ."  ftfmvf,  3y  T£s,?arj,  co^fight,  Jf<jQ?,  Sy 

CURTIS  k  CAMERON  S^iSSS?  BOSTOH 


Backward  Reasoning! — Incorrect  Arrangement.  The  effective 
method  is  to  present  first  the  name  of  the  commodity,  or  the 
idea,  need,  occasion,  which  shall  be  in  the  reader's  mind  on 
subsequent  occasions.  Follow  this  by  the  name  of  the  partic- 
ular brand,  the  firm  name,  the  trade  mark,  the  slogan,  etc., 
which  you  desire  him  to  think  of  at  the  moment  when  he 
thinks  of  the  commodity  or  feels  the  particular  need. 


Place  first  the  general  class,  the  purpose  or  use 
to  which  the  article  can  be  put,  the  word  whicli 

195 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

will  be  in  consciousness  in  the  moment  of  need. 
Thus,  "the  best  of  Christmas  gifts." 

Place  next  the  name  of  the  article  or  brand 
which  you  desire  to  connect  with  the  need,  or 
which  you  desire  to  make  the  standard  specimen 
for  the  general  class  in  question.  See  the  Copley 
prints  advertisements. 

If,  instead,  the  first  word  in  the  advertisement 
were  "Copley  prints,"  and  only  later  came  the 
Words,  "best  Christmas  gift,"  the  idea  of 
"prints"  would  come  to  remind  the  reader  of 
"Christmas,"  but  when  he  found  himself  think- 
ing over  the  "best  gift"  to  purchase  there  would 
be  no  particularly  strong  inclination  to  think  of 
' '  Copley  prints. ' ' 

It  seems  to  the  writer  that  no  law  is  violated 
oftener  than  this  in  current  advertising,  and  that 
the  law  is  no  mere  subtlety  but  an  important  ele- 
ment in  the  general  efficiency  of  copy.  In  fact, 
the  law  may  be  conformed  to  so  fully  that  the 
specific  brand  may  come  to  be  synonymous,  in  the 
mind  of  the  public,  with  the  general  class  or  use. 
When  this  point  is  reached  it  becomes  necessary 
to  teach  not  association  but  dissociation.  Thus 
the  Kodak  copy  must  now  teach  people  that  not 
all  cameras  are  Kodaks.  The  law  of  association 
worked  so  thoroughly  here  that  it  now  operates 

196 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

against  its  original  purpose.  The  case  nicely  il- 
lustrates the  fallacy  of  relying  solely  on  any  one 
principle  and  disregarding  others. 

The  chief  method  of  fixing  an  impression  re- 
ceived from  an  advertisement  is  by  connecting  it 
up  with  the  stimulus  in  which  the  need  for  some 
such  article  will  be  felt.  There  are  various  ways 
in  which  this  connection  may  be  made. 


I.     LAWS     OF     OKIGINAL     CONNECTION" 

1.  Contiguity. — This  is  perhaps  the  most  fre- 
quent cause  of  association.  Things  perceived 
side  by  side,  either  in  space  or  time,  tend  to  sug- 
gest each  other,  on  recurrence  of  either.  Thus 
"Brooklyn  Bridge' '  calls  up  "East  River.' ' 

If  a  place  of  business  is  announced  as  being 
"one  block  from  Grand  Central"  or  "near  Her- 
ald Square,"  the  thought  or  sight  of  Grand  Cen- 
tral or  Herald  Square  will  tend  to  revive,  by  as- 
sociation, the  name,  business,  and  location  of  the 
advertised  store. 

2.  Similarity. — Things  bearing  a  resemblance 
to  each  other  tend  to  call  each  other  up  in  con- 
sciousness. They  do  this  because  certain  ele- 
ments in  the  two  facts  are  identical,  hence  tend 
to  call  up  both  wholes  of  which  they  have  previ- 

197 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

ously  been  a  part.  Thus  one  person  reminds 
one  of  another  because  the  two  have  identi- 
cally shaped  noses.  One  biscuit  reminds  one 
of  another  because  the  color  of  the  box  is  the 
same.  The  Jungf  rau  reminds  us  of  Pike 's  Peak ; 
Moxine  reminds  us  of  Moxie,  and  will  take  unto 
itself  any  atmosphere  of  desirability  that  Moxie 
has  developed.  Similarly  Yale  locks  will  sell  Yale 
bicycles.  The  general  sentiment  seems  to  be 
against  the  use  of  such  similarity  appeal  as  is 
involved  in  the  reference  to  substitutes  and  imi- 
tations. Obviously  this  is  only  from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  original  article.  If  you  happen  to  be 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  substitutes  the 
more  of  the  original  atmosphere  you  can  borrow, 
the  better. 

3.  The  third  basis  of  association  is  emotional 
congruity.  This  simply  means  that  the  feelings 
aroused  by  two  different  experiences  are  the  same, 
and  whenever  one  comes,  the  feeling  produced 
tends  to  call  up  the  other  also.  Thus  falling  from 
a  trapeze  once  reminded  me  vividly  of  a  time 
when  I  was  chased  by  an  Indian  with  a  tomahawk. 
The  importance  of  the  esthetic  factors  of  an  ad- 
vertisement comes  here  strongly  into  prominence. 
Not  only  do  pleasing  advertisements  attract  us, 
and  hold  us,  but  we  in  turn  hold  them. 

198 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

Furthermore,  any  experience  with  strong  feel- 
ing tone  is  better  retained  than  indifferent  facts. 
This  is  of  especial  importance  in  appeals  over  the 
short  circuit,  appeals  to  feelings  and  emotions  for 
the  sake  of  vividness. 

Connection  with  pleasurable  emotions  fixates 
associations  and  tends  to  lead  to  action.  Appeals 
through  sympathy,  loyalty,  interest,  civic  pride, 
local  atmosphere,  through  excitement  over  cur- 
rent events,  through  prevalent  ideas,  crazes,  de- 
sires, movements,  etc.,  will  all  tend  to  be  more 
or  less  successful,  though  transiently  so.  Such 
advertising  must  keep  constantly  changing  in  tone 
and  direction,  and  it  is  both  difficult  and  expensive 
to  "keep  one's  finger  on  the  public  pulse' '  closely 
and  delicately  enough  to  be  able  to  use  these  so- 
cial currents  to  advantage.  When  the  local  ex- 
citement has  blown  over  and  the  incident  tends 
to  be  forgotten,  the  article  advertised  in  connec- 
tion with  it  tends  to  be  forgotten  along  with  it. 

A  safer  plan  is  to  utilize  the  stable  and  perma- 
nent emotions  more  or  less  common  to  all  times 
and  places.  Thus  a  powerful  basis  of  appeal  and 
spring  of  conduct,  for  certain  kinds  of  commodi- 
ties, is  the  religious  emotion.  It  is  reported  that 
a  book  entitled  ' '  Wonders  of  Nature ' '  fell  flat  on 
the  market.    The  title  was  changed  to  "Wonders 

199 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

of  Nature  and  Architecture  of  God,"  and  a  sec- 
ond edition  was  at  once  called  for. 

II.      PRINCIPLES  OF  REVIVAL 

The  foregoing  are  called  the  principles  of  con- 
nection because  they  have  to  do  with  the  process 
by  which  an  association  is  originally  produced. 
But  the  fact  that  a  connection  has  been  made  does 
not  guarantee  the  reproduction  of  the  pair.  For 
several  ideas  might  each  have  been  connected  with 
the  stimulus,  and  they  could  not  all  be  revived  at 
once.  There  is,  then,  a  further  question,  viz., 
how,  granted  a  connection  once  made,  can  we  be 
sure  that  one  associate  will  come  rather  than  some 
other! 

In  answer  to  this  question  we  find  a  group  of 
principles  which  we  may  call  the  principles  of  re- 
vival as  distinguished  from  the  principles  of  con- 
nection. The  first  four  are  the  most  important. 
They  are,  in  order  of  their  relative  strength: 

1.  Frequency. — Other  things  being  equal,  the 
association  most  often  repeated  will  be  the  strong- 
est connection.  "Theodore"  suggests  "Roose- 
velt," rather  than  "Sturm,"  "Cousins,"  or  any 
other  associate,  simply  because  it  has  occurred 
more  frequently  than  any  other.     Every  repeti- 

200 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

tion  strengthens  the  connection,  just  as  every  rab- 
bit bopping  through  the  snow  emphasizes  and  de- 
fines the  path  of  the  rabbit  which  passed  that 
way  before.  This  is  the  principle  of  repetition  in 
advertising.  Repetition  has  both  a  memory  and 
response  value,  as  we  shall  see  later.  In  experi- 
ments in  the  laboratory,  counting  "normal  asso- 
ciation, ' '  or  that  which  results  after  unemphasized 
reading,  as  26  per  cent.,  repetition  gives  an  aver- 
age value  of  64  per  cent.,  nearly  three  times  the 
memory  value  of  unrepeated  material.  So  among 
practical  men,  repetition  is  considered  an  effec- 
tive, albeit  an  expensive,  method  of  securing  pub- 
licity. As  we  have  already  seen,  different  kinds 
of  material  vary  somewhat  with  respect  to  their 
attention  value  in  repetition,  relevant  words  in- 
creasing, all  cuts  decreasing,  and  irrelevant  words 
remaining  on  a  level.  But  so  far  as  memory 
goes,  repetition,  if  supported  by  attention,  always 
strengthens  the  impression. 

2.  The  second  factor  in  relative  strength  is 
vividness.  Vividness  may  be  brought  about  in 
many  ways — through  sheer  intensity,  through  sur- 
prise, strong  attention,  interest,  or  through  con- 
nection with  some  emotion,  as  fear,  hope,  envy, 
etc.  The  more  vivid  the  impression,  the  longer 
it  lasts.     Strong  colors,  enormous  signs,  humor- 

201 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

ous  associations,  motor  responses  such  as  clip- 
ping a  coupon,  sending  an  inquiry,  etc.,  are  merely 
varied  ways  of  producing  vividness.  Compared 
with  the  normal  value,  26  per  cent.,  vividness 
gives  an  experimental  average  of  52  per  cent,  effi- 
ciency. 

Closely  related  to  vividness,  and  being,  perhaps, 
only  special  forms  of  it  are : 

3.  Recency,  with  an  average  value  of  50  per 
cent.,  and 

4.  Primacy,  with  a  value  of  46  per  cent. 
When  all  other  factors  are  equal,  we  can  be 

sure  that  the  first  association  will  predominate. 
At  least  the  first  and  last  impressions  have  the 
advantage.  We  have  already  discussed  this  in  the 
section  on  "position." 

The  Curve  of  Forgetting. — Another  important 
point  has  to  do  with  the  most  effective  distribu- 
tion of  a  series  of  appeals  which  are  to  be  ad- 
dressed, one  after  the  other,  to  the  same  person. 
Circulars,  follow-up  literature,  educational  cam- 
paigns, etc.,  often  afford  instances  of  this  method 
of  appeal.  The  ordinary  method  is  to  distribute 
the  successive  appeals  according  to  the  calendar 
divisions  of  time,  as  every  week  or  ten  days, 
every  two  weeks,  etc.,  until  all  the  appeals  have 
been  presented.    This  method  proceeds  on  the  as- 

202 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

sumption  that  the  reader's  memory  and  interest 
are  controlled  by  the  movements  of  the  celestial  or 
terrestrial  bodies,  while  the  fact  is  that  memory 
follows  laws  of  its  own,  regardless  of  the  conven- 
tional and  calendar  divisions  of  the  passage  of 
time.  When  a  given  appeal  is  addressed  to  me, 
I  straightway  proceed  to  forget  it.  But  I  do  not 
forget  it  at  a  uniform  rate,  so  much  being  for- 
gotten on  each  succeeding  day  until  all  is  forgot- 

00 


73 


50 


5  IO  13  20  25  iO 

The  Curve  of  Forgetting 


33 


ten.  Instead  I  forget  the  material  that  has  been 
seen  or  learned,  according  to  a  definite  1 1  curve  of 
forgetting,"  a  curve  which  descends  rapidly  at 
first  and  then  more  slowly.  The  larger  propor- 
tion of  the  material  is  forgotten  in  the  first  day 
or  so.  After  that  a  constantly  decreasing  amount 
is  forgotten  on  each  succeeding  day. 

The  height  of  the  curve  above  the  base  line  here 
indicates    the    amount   remembered,    the   figures 

203 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

along  the  base  indicating  the  units  of  time  elapsed 
since  first  learning  the  material.  During  the  first 
ten  units  as  much  is  forgotten  as  during  all  the 
remaining  twenty-five.  Of  course,  the  amounts 
and  time  units  in  the  accompanying  curve  are 
purely  arbitrary.  Their  real  value  will  depend  on 
the  quality  and  the  quantity  of  the  material 
learned  and  on  the  time  interval  chosen.  But  the 
form  of  the  curve  shows  clearly  that  by  far  the 
greater  number  of  repetitions  should  come  at  the 
beginning  of  the  campaign,  when  the  tendency  to 
forget  is  strong.  When  the  maximum  of  retention 
is  then  reached  the  later  repetitions  may  be 
farther  and  farther  apart. 

It  ought  to  be  obvious  at  once  that  the  effective 
distribution  of  a  series  of  appeals  will  be  a  dis- 
tribution which  conforms  to  this  curve  of  forget- 
ting. The  first  appeal  having  been  presented,  the 
second  should  follow  close  upon  it,  the  third  at  a 
somewhat  greater  interval  from  the  second,  the 
fourth  a  somewhat  longer  time  after  the  third, 
etc.,  the  intervals  growing  longer  and  longer  un- 
til the  series  is  completed.  This  massing  of  the 
appeals  at  the  earlier  portion  of  the  total  period 
will  result  in  reinforcement  of  the  first  appeal  at 
the  crucial  moments,  the  moments  when,  unless 
thus  reinforced,  they  tend  to  be  quickly  forgot- 

204 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

ten,  thus  leaving  the  later  appeals  to  appear  on 
what  is  practically  barren  ground.  That  is  to 
say,  the  effective  distribution  of  a  series  of  ap- 
peals addressed  to  the  same  person  will  not  fol- 
low a  calendar  order  such  as  the  following: 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

Initial 

After  One 

After  Two 

After  Three 

After  Four 

Appeal 

Week 

Weeks 

Weeks 

Weeks 

but  will  follow  a  distribution  based  on  the  curve 
of  forgetting,  as : 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

Initial 

After 

After 

After 

After 

Appeal 

2  Days 

5  Days 

10  Days 

20  Days 

Any  one  may  convince  himself  of  the  existence 
of  this  law  by  simply  trying  to  memorize  a  given 
amount  of  material  of  any  sort,  by  distributing 
his  learning  periods  or  repetitions  according  to 
the  two  plans.  This  law  seems  to  me  to  be  one  of 
the  most  important  results  of  the  experimental 
study  of  memory,  and  one  which  the  practical 
man  has  been  surprisingly  slow  in  appropriating. 

MINOR    DEVICES 

Further  minor  devices  for  aiding  the  memory 
value  are:  Ingenuity,  rhyme,  rhythm,  and  motor 
reinforcement.  These  are  really  nothing  more 
than  forms  of  vividness,  but  are  distinct  enough 
from  each  other  to  merit  separate  mention. 

205 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

1.  Ingenuity. — Just  as  novelty  attracts  atten- 
tion and  holds  it,  a  curious,  bizarre  name,  pack- 
age, trade  mark  is  likely  to  stick.  Such  words  as 
"Uneeda  Biscuit/ '  "Keen  Kutter,"  "Rough  on 
Bats,"  "Ever  Stick,"  "No  Smellee,"  stick  in 
one's  consciousness.     The  merchant  with 

Street  No.  33 
Telephone  No.  33 
Letters  in  name,  33 
Price  of  suit,  $33 

could  easily  make  up  an  ingenious  and  impressive 
advertisement  (see  Scott).  But  to  be  effective 
under  this  heading  a  name  must  be  really  in- 
genious, not  merely  a  hybrid. 

2.  Rhyme  and  alliteration  are  other  things  that 
attract  attention  and  are  easily  remembered  be- 
cause they  suggest  in  themselves  a  single  unified 
scheme  on  which  to  hang  the  separate  facts. 

3.  Closely  related  also  is  rhythm,  which  re- 
duces the  learning  of  a  given  amount  of  material 
about  40-50  per  cent.,  by  lending  motor  control 
and  further  means  of  association  with  movements. 
The  writer  once  tried  to  teach  the  English  alpha- 
bet to  a  kindergarten  class  of  German  children. 
Several  days'  effort  was  unsuccessful.  At  last 
the  idea  occurred  to  set  the  letters  to  the  tune  of 

206 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

"Yankee  Doodle"  and  sing  them  with  the  class. 
The  alphabet  was  learned  in  a  single  recitation 
period.  Similarly  the  names  of  things  sung  in 
rhythm  or  rhyme  on  the  advertising  cards  tend 
to  be  retained.  This  does  not  mean,  however,  that 
the  goods  thus  sung  will  necessarily  be  sold.  It  is 
one  thing  to  make  a  commodity  known  as  ' '  worthy 
of  song"  and  quite  another  thing  to  make  it 
known  as  "worth  buying." 

4.  Motor  reinforcement  is  one  of  the  important 
aids  to  memory.  Try  to  memorize  a  verse  of 
poetry.  You  will  at  once  find  yourself  making 
sets  of  movements  which  are  designed  to  aid  you 
in  retaining  the  material;  you  speak  the  words  to 
yourself,  moving  the  lips  meanwhile,  or  you  write 
the  lines  on  paper  or  accompany  the  learning 
process  by  tapping  the  toes,  swinging  the  body 
to  and  fro,  nodding  the  head,  etc.  Just  as  clench- 
ing the  fist  or  gripping  a  piece  of  wood  re- 
inforces the  leap  or  brace  which  one  is  about  to 
give,  so  the  performance  of  a  motor  process  in 
connection  with  an  idea  tends  strongly  to  impress 
that  idea  in  memory.  You  remember  the  thing 
you  have  done  yourself  much  more  easily  than 
the  things  you  have  passively  observed  others 
performing — the  words  you  write  much  more  eas- 
ily than  the  sentence  you  merely  read. 

207 


PRINCIPLES   OF   APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

Herein  lies  the  chief  importance  of  invitations 
to  clip  out  the  advertisement,  to  draw  the  figure, 
to  write  for  information  or  catalogues,  to  tear  off 
and  preserve  or  return  coupons,  etc.  If  the 
reader  can  be  induced  to  carry  out  any  such  ac- 
tion in  connection  with  the  advertisement,  the 
memory  value  of  the  copy  will  be  tremendously 
enhanced.  And  this  follows,  not  only  because 
more  time  is  spent  on  the  advertisement  and  more 
thought  given  to  it,  but  largely  because  the  motor 
response  reinforces  the  mental  impression. 

Obviously  the  success  of  such  devices  will  usu- 
ally depend  on  the  ease  with  which  the  action  can 
be  carried  out.  The  ideal  would  be  the  longest 
act  which  the  average  reader  would  carry  out 
without  the  sense  of  lost  time. 

MEMORABILITY   OF   DIFFERENT   KINDS   OF   FACTS 

An  important  factor  in  putting  an  article  on 
the  market  or  in  keeping  it  there  is  that  of  having 
a  trade  mark,  emblem,  seal,  design,  or  name,  by 
which  the  article  may  always  be  remembered, 
asked  for,  recognized  and  recommended.  Herein 
enter  in  large  measure  the  preceding  factors  of 
rhyme,  rhythm,  alliteration  and  ingenuity.  But 
another  highly  important  factor  which  is  little 
recognized  is  that  of  the  memorability  of  different 

208 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

kinds  of  material.  In  selecting  a  mark  by  which 
goods,  designed  for  popular  consumption,  are  to 
be  known,  it  is  of  real  value,  for  instance,  to  know 
that  persons  and  faces  are  more  easily  remem- 
bered than  objects,  and  objects  more  easily  than 
actions;  that  form  is  more  easily  remembered  and 
recognized  than  color,  although  colors  are  more 
accurately  remembered  than  numbers.  More 
numbers  can  be  remembered  than  colors,  but  they 
are  likely  to  be  wrongly  remembered  or  remem- 
bered as  existing  in  a  false  order  or  position. 

In  a  carefully  conducted  experiment  in  the 
writer 's  laboratory  the  investigator  measured  the 
accuracy  with  which  40  persons  in  an  audience 
could  observe  and  remember  for  a  period  of  three 
days  the  various  features  ot  an  elaborately 
planned  performance  which  was  carried  on  in 
their  presence.  The  reliability  of  each  witness 
was  measured,  along  with  the  accuracy  with  which 
different  sorts  of  facts  were  reported. 

The  individual  reliability  ranged  from  38  per 
cent,  to  82  per  cent,  accuracy,  with  an  average  of 
62  per  cent.  It  is  important  to  note,  then,  that 
the  ordinary  witness  observes  only  about  60  per 
cent,  of  the  features  of  an  event  to  which  his  at- 
tention is  already  directed.  That  is  to  say,  40 
per  cent,  of  the  advertisements  and  40  per  cent. 

209 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

of  each  advertisement  will,  on  the  average,  pass 
unnoticed.  Moreover,  only  about  2  per  cent,  of 
readers  normally  see  advertisements.  (See 
Strong.)  This  gives  2  per  cent,  of  60  =  about  1 
per  cent,  efficiency.  Which  features,  then,  will 
most  likely  be  observed  and  retained  correctly? 
The  table  for  this  experiment,  indicating  the 
relative  accuracy  with  which  different  sorts  of 
facts  are  reported  when  direct  questions  are 
asked  concerning  them,  runs  as  follows: 

TABLE    X 

Accuracy 

1.  Mere  presence  of  things 97% 

2.  Number  of  people 65% 

3.  Space  relations,  form,  etc 58% 

4.  Condition  of  objects 48% 

5.  Order  of  events 35% 

6.  Color, 26% 

7.  Size  and  quantity 22% 

8.  Sounds 10% 

9.  Time  (duration) 8% 

10.  Actions  (strong  attention  value  but  not  ac- 
curately reported) 

The  importance  of  these  facts  in  selecting  trade 
marks,  packages,  names,  slogans,  and  points  of 
emphasis  for  advertising  purposes  is  constantly 
disregarded. 

Another  experiment  was  designed  to  measure 
the  relative  memory  value  of  cuts  as  compared 
with  that  of  reading  matter.     For  this  experi- 

210 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

ment  proof  slips  of  advertisements  designed  and 
kindly  furnished  by  Will  Phillip  Hooper  were 
used.  The  advertisements  were  uniform  in  size 
and  style,  and  all  contained  about  equal  amounts 
of  cut  and  reading  matter.  Twenty-five  of  these 
advertisements  were  examined  by  each  of  the  ob- 
servers, who  were  then  requested  to  select  from  a 
collection  of  ninety  advertisements  those  which 
they  had  previously  seen.  Of  the  twenty-five  orig- 
inal cards,  fifteen  were  present  unchanged.  Of  the 
remaining  ten,  five  contained  the  same  cut,  but  the 
text  had  been  changed,  while  five  retained  the 
original  text  but  bore  a  totally  new  cut.  The  idea 
was  to  discover  which  of  these  two  changes,  of 
cut  or  of  text,  would  attract  more  attention,  and 
which  would  most  disturb  the  memory  of  the  ob- 
server. 

The  following  table  resulted,  showing:  (1) 
that  the  change  in  the  cut  is  most  frequently  de- 
tected, thus  that  the  cut  has  greater  attention 
value;  (2)  that  cards  with  changed  cuts  are  re- 
membered by  the  text  more  often  than  cards  with 
changed  text  are  remembered  by  the  cut,  that  is 
that  the  memory  value  of  text  is  higher  than  that 
of  cuts;  (3)  that  the  combination  of  the  original 
cut  with  original  text  has  much  higher  memory 

211 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

value  than  that  of  either  of  the  two  mutilated 
forms. 

TABLE   XI 


Normal  ads  recognized 77% 

Ads  with  right  text  but  wrong  cut 56% 

Ads  with  right  cut  but  wrong  text 43% 

Substitution  of  cut  detected 26% 

Substitution  of  text  detected 17% 


TRADE  MARKS 

In  the  same  laboratory  a  study  has  been  made 
of  the  relative  attention  and  memory  value  of 
different  geometric  forms,  such  as  are  commonly 
used  as  trade  marks.  Fifty  such  designs  were 
chosen,  of  the  same  general  size  and  same  color. 
Experiments  on  twenty-five  observers  showed 
these  forms  to  differ  widely  in  the  respect  tested. 
The  values  range  from  28  per  cent,  to  92  per 
cent.  The  following  plate  gives  the  list  of  these 
forms  and  also  the  percentage  of  accuracy  with 
which  each  was  recognized  when  a  group  of  fif- 
teen previously  displayed  was  selected  from  a  set 
of  fifty  which  included  the  original  fifteen  and 
thirty-five  strange  forms.  The  general  principle 
suggested  by  this  experiment  is  that  those  forms 
are  best  remembered  to  which  specific  names  can 
be  given,  as  "star,"  " crescent,' '  " crown,' '  etc. 

212 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

92    W       91  92.         8».  ss  I* 3* 

r/^  ,,,  /;</  feo  *°  *>°         6o     t,o 


GV  6V  ** 


60  i~(> 

« 


Y? 


Yp^dfc  N  $4* 


Eelative  Attention  Value  of  50  Geometrical  Foems 
VICARIOUS  SACRIFICES  IN  ADVERTISING 

The  failure  to  observe  the  foregoing  laws  of 
association  and  memory  often  leads  to  what  may 
be  called  "vicarious  sacrifice' '  in  advertising.  A 
century  ago  we  could  consume  faster  than  we 

213 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

could  produce.  The  situation  now  is  frequently 
said  to  be  just  the  reverse,  the  advertiser  often 
finding  it  necessary  to  stimulate  consumption. 
He  finds  it  necessary  to  create  a  new  need,  or  to 
invest  an  old  need  with  greater  urgency,  just  as 
Hand  Sapolio  tried  to  create  an  ideal  of  cleanli- 
ness among  people  not  using  soap,  or  as  Sapolio 
created  a  higher  ideal  of  cleanliness  of  pots  and 
kettles.     (See  Balmer,  p.  34.) 

Once  such  a  demand  is  created,  non-advertised 
articles  at  once  share  in  the  profits.  In  so  far  as 
this  happens,  the  work  of  the  advertiser  may  be 
said  to  be  vicarious ;  it  is  a  free  will  offering  to 
the  non-advertiser.  Such  sacrifice,  however,  is 
often  due  to  the  advertising.  Thus  the  early  Sub- 
way cards  of  Boston  Rubber  Company  with  their 
"Wet  Feet  Did  It"  warnings  certainly  created  a 
greater  demand  for  rubbers  in  general,  but  not 
for  Boston  Rubbers  in  particular,  because  this 
particular  brand  was  not  carefully  associated  in 
the  mind  of  the  reader  with  the  need.  Experi- 
ments which  the  writer  was  making  with  a  set  of 
seventy-five  subway  advertisements  at  the  time 
showed  clear lv  the  tendency  not  to  notice  the 
brand  advertised  on  these  cards  at  all,  but  to  con- 
nect the  warnings  and  general  feelings  of  need 
with  a  striking  card  advertising  the  "Ever  Stick" 

214 


FIXING    THE    IMPRESSION 

rubber,  which,  so  far  as  the  writer's  knowledge 
goes,  was  a  rival  product.  Since  that  time  these 
cards  have  been  greatly  improved. 

In  conclusion,  we  may  say  that  a  successful  ad- 
vertisement not  only  attracts  and  holds  attention, 
but  in  so  doing  it  connects  a  specific  brand  or  ar- 
ticle with  a  general  need,  so  that  when  the  general 
need  is  felt,  the  action  will  not  be  toward  such  ar- 
ticles in  general,  but  toward  this  specific  brand  in 
particular.  In  the  following  chapter  on  provok- 
ing the  response  we  shall  seek  to  analyze  still  fur- 
ther the  ways  in  which  this  specific  action  may  be 
brought  about. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE    FOURTH    TASK:     PROVOKING   THE    RESPONSE 

After  all  has  been  said,  the  final  value  of  an  ap- 
peal depends  entirely  upon  the  effectiveness  with 
which  it  leads  to  the  desired  specific  action.  No 
amount  of  care  in  framing  a  solicitation  so  as  to 
catch  the  eye,  to  hold  attention,  and  to  stick  in  the 
memory,  will  be  worth  the  trouble  if  the  reader's 
reaction  does  not  go  beyond  the  appeal  itself,  and 
include  the  article  which  the  appeal  announces. 
Granted,  then,  that  the  first  three  tasks  have  been 
adequately  performed,  what  are  the  principles 
which  control  the  direction,  the  certainty,  and  the 
force  of  the  response? 

Obviously  there  are  two  cases  to  be  considered 
here.  First,  the  case  in  whicli  the  appeal  is  ad- 
dressed directly  to  the  life  of  feeling,  impulse 
and  instinct — what  we  have  balled  the  short-cir- 
cuit appeal — and,  second,  the  case  in  which  delib- 
eration, comparison  and  argument  are  invited — 
the  "reason  why"  appeal  by  means  of  the  long 
circuit.     In  the  first  case  there  is  no  conflict  or 

216 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

rivalry  stirred  up  in  the  reader's  consciousness; 
there  is  simply  the  attempt  to  present  the  article 
in  such  a  way  as  to  provoke  some  firmly  grounded 
act  of  appropriation,  to  stir  up  some  strong  im- 
pulse or  keen  desire  and  so  to  lead  to  favorable 
action.  In  the  second  type  conflict  is,  on  the  con- 
trary, even  encouraged.  Selling  points,  superi- 
orities, advantages,  etc.,  are  advanced,  and  the 
claims  of  rival  commodities  deliberately  chal- 
lenged. 

It  will  be  difficult  to  speak  in  terms  of  general 
laws  here,  and  yet  to  remain  concrete.  Condi- 
tions will  vary  according  to  the  article,  the  read- 
er's temperament  and  need,  local  influences, 
habits  and  customs.  The  result  is  that  this  is  one 
of  the  most  promising  fields  for  further  research 
in  applied  and  practical  psychology.  Some  of  the 
experiments  that  are  already  in  progress  in  the 
field  of  advertising  will  be  reported  in  the  chapter 
on  the  experimental  method.  But  there  is  a  cer- 
tain group  of  principles  which  can  be  clearly 
stated  and  applied  on  the  basis  of  what  we  al- 
ready know  of  mental  processes  in  the  life  of  ac- 
tion. These  we  will  take  up  in  turn.  Our  chief 
concern  will  be  with  the  laws  of  suggestion  and 
with  our  earlier  question  concerning  the  ap- 
propriate use  of  long  and  short  circuit  appeals. 

217 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

DIRECT  APPEALS  TO  FEELING 

Short  Circuit  Action  Without  Conflict. — We 
may  distinguish  two  general  types  of  short  circuit 
appeal : 

(a)  The  appeal  through  command,  assertion, 
invitation,  either  direct  or  indirect.  Such  an 
appeal  will  owe  its  force  to  the  degree  to  which  it 
conforms  to  the  laws  of  suggestion.  At  this 
point,  then,  these  laivs  of  suggestion  must  come  in 
for  their  share  of  discussion. 

(b)  The  second  type  wTill  be  the  appeal  to  some 
definite  instinct,  or  other  strong  and  certain  form 
of  reaction.  Success  here  will  depend  chiefly  on 
the  strength  and  promptness  of  the  instinct  to 
which  the  appeal  is  made.  Here,  then,  will  be  the 
place  to  consider  the  topic  to  which  we  have  so 
frequently  referred,  but  as  often  postponed  for 
later  discussion,  viz.,  the  question  of  the  relative 
strength  of  the  various  human  instincts,  and  their 
dependence  on  such  factors  as  age,  sex,  class,  oc- 
cupation, training,  the  commodity  in  question,  etc. 

THE  NATURE  AND  LAWS  OF  SUGGESTION 

No  little  mystery  has  come  to  invest  the  word 
"suggestion,"  chiefly  because  of  its  constant  use 

218 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

by  pseudo-scientific  writers  in  their  attempts  to 
develop  dramatic  interest  in  the  extreme  sug- 
gestibility of  certain  states  of  drowsiness,  ab- 
straction, fatigue  and  hysteria.  But  there  is  no 
more  mystery  here  than  there  is  in  any  of  the 
simple  mental  processes  along  the  nervous  arc. 
The  fundamental  law  is  that  of  ideo-motor  ac- 
tion.1 In  the  earlier  discussion  of  the  nervous 
basis  of  mental  processes,  we  pointed  out  the  law 
that  every  sensory  impulse  has  its  inevitable  mo- 
tor issue.  The  nervous  energy  generated  or  liber- 
ated by  a  stimulus  emerges  at  the  other  end  of 
the  arc  in  the  form  of  action.  This  action  is  usu- 
ally directed  toward  the  stimulus  itself,  in  the 
form  of  movements  of  appropriation  or  rejection. 
Sometimes,  however,  the  response  is  not  so  ap- 
parent, when,  for  instance,  it  takes  the  form  of 
general  bodily  attitude,  changes  in  breathing, 
heart  beat,  gland  action,  vascular  changes,  or 
general  rigidity  or  tension  of  muscles.  More- 
over, the  strength  of  the  reaction  need  not  be  ex- 
actly proportionate  to  the  strength  of  the  stimu- 
lus. Sometimes  the  energy  may  be  drained  off 
into  other  channels  that  are  active  at  the  time, 

1  The  psychological  reader  should  not  confuse  the  law  of  ideo- 
motor  action,  as  here  presented,  with  the  doctrine  that  the  cause 
of  a  voluntary  movement  is  a  kinesthetic  image  of  that  movement. 

219 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

and  the  value  of  the  response  will  then  be  ob- 
scured. Again,  the  direct  response  may  itself 
drain  off  energy  from  other  pathways,  and  its 
strength  be  relatively  increased. 

Closely  connected  with  this  law  of  the  inevitable 
motor  issue  of  sensory  impulses  is  a  correlate 
law  which  concerns  mental  processes  that  do  not 
have  an  immediate  sensory  cause.  In  the  section 
on  Imagination  we  have  seen  that  we  may  have 
ideas  and  images  even  when  there  is  no  corre- 
sponding activity  of  the  sense  organ.  These 
processes  are  then  due  to  what  we  may  call  the 
spontaneous  activity  of  the  brain  centers.  This 
spontaneity,  however,  will  only  mean  independ- 
ence of  a  corresponding  sensory  impression.  But 
the  activity  will  usually  be  seen  to  be  caused  by 
virtue  of  the  association  of  the  center  in  ques- 
tion with  some  other  center  whose  previous  activ- 
ity has  stirred  it  up  in  what  seems  to  be  a  spon- 
taneous way.  Often  the  activity  is  due  to  some 
present  sensory  impression,  which,  however,  does 
not  correspond  in  character  to  that  of  the  spon- 
taneous image  or  idea.  Frequently  this  impres- 
sion is  simply  a  word — the  auditory  impression 
of  syllables  spoken  or  the  visual  impression  of  a 
written  or  printed  word.  The  word  center  is 
closely  associated  with  the  sensory  center  which 

220 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

is  involved  when  we  actually  perceive  the  object 
which  the  word  denotes  or  means.  Hence,  activ- 
ity from  the  word  center  overflows  into  the  object 
center,  and  the  result  is  an  apparently  spontane- 
ous image,  picture,  or  idea  of  the  object  or  act 
which  the  word  suggests. 

Now  these  so-called  spontaneous  nervous 
processes  have  their  tendency  to  motor  issue,  just 
as  do  sensory  impulses.  Every  idea  of  a  situa- 
tion t-ends  to  produce  movements  calculated  to 
handle  that  situation.  'This  happens  just  because 
the  discharge  of  energy  from  brain  center  to 
motor  apparatus  has  become  a  habit.  Constant 
practice  has  set  up  ready  paths  of  discharge  be- 
tween ideational  and  motor  centers.  Thus  I  do 
not  have  to  deliberately  trace  out  the  form  of 
these  letters  as  I  write.  I  simply  think  the  word 
and,  by  fixing  my  attention  on  the  point  of  the 
pencil,  guide  it  in  straight  lines  across  the  page. 
But  the  letters  form  themselves.  The  simple  idea 
of  the  word  carries  itself  out  into  the  act  of  writ- 
ing it.  The  interesting  and,  to  the  uninitiated, 
mystifying  performances  of  the  planchette,  the 
Ouija  board,  the  automatic  writer,  the  muscle 
reader,  and  similar  phenomena  have  been  clearly 
shown  to  be  due  to  this  motor  issue  of  conscious 

221 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

or  subconscious  ideas  and  images  in  the  mind  of 
the  experimenter. 

Ideas  and  images  of  objects,  persons  and  situa- 
tions tend  just  as  strongly  to  set  up  responses 
calculated  to  adapt  the  organism  to  the  particular 
object,  person  or  situation  thought  of.  Think 
intently  of  your  cravat,  and  you  will  find  your- 
self fingering  and  adjusting  it.  Concentrate  on 
the  choice  cigar  in  your  pocket,  and  you  will  likely 
search  at  once  for  the  match  box.  Vividly  re- 
call the  pleasant  languor  of  a  warm  bath  or  the 
tremendous  wind  currents  of  lower  Broadway  and 
you  will  find  yourself  either  stretching  out  your 
legs,  closing  your  eyes  and  reclining  in  your  chair, 
or,  as  the  case  may  be,  ducking  down  into  your 
coat  collar  and  clutching  your  hat  brim;  and  the 
more  you  attend  to  the  idea  in  mind  the  more  com- 
pletely will  its  motor  issue  be  realized.  If  you  at- 
tend strongly  enough  you  may  find  the  idea 
amounting  to  an  hallucination — that  is,  you  act 
just  as  you  would  in  the  presence  of  the  actual 
object. 

This,  then,  is  the  fundamental  law  of  ideo- 
motor  action,  and  the  basis  of  what  we  sometimes 
call  suggestion.  Every  idea  of  a  function  tends 
to  realize  itself,  and  ivill  do  so  in  so  far  as  it  is 
not  inhibited  by  rival  ideas  or  impeded  by  physi- 

999 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

cal  circumstances.  Whatever  tends  to  clarify  or 
intensify  the  image  or  idea  tends  to  precipitate 
the  act.  This  is  what  was  meant  in  the  fourth 
chapter,  when  it  was  said  that  "attention  is  the 
basis  of  every  act  of  will."  An  idea,  once  intro- 
duced into  consciousness,  derives  its  "will 
power,"  its  action  strength,  from  the  degree  to 
which  it  can  completely  dominate  consciousness. 
This  domination  will  depend  partly  on  the  intrin- 
sic intensity  and  impulsiveness  of  the  idea,  partly 
on  the  degree  to  which  it  is  reinforced  by  inner 
processes — attention,  ideal,  etc.  Other  things  be- 
ing equal,  this  power  depends  on  the  amount  of 
attention  the  idea  receives. 

When  such  an  idea  originates  more  or  less  di- 
rectly or  spontaneously  in  the  mind  of  the  actor, 
we  call  it  an  intention,  a  purpose,  an  impulse,  etc. 
When  its  origin  can  be  traced  further  back  to 
some  more  or  less  obvious  external  source,  a  pic- 
ture, a  command  or  an  invitation  of  a  second  per- 
son, the  behavior  of  another  person  or  group  of 
persons,  etc.,  we  call  it  a  suggestion.  Suggestion, 
then,  is  no  more  a  mystery  than  the  fact  that  1 
can  speak  or  write  my  thoughts,  button  my  coat 
or  sharpen  my  lead  pencil  at  pleasure.  But  just 
as  there  are  certain  laws  which  experiment  and 
general  observation  show  to  control  the  maximum 

223 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL    AND   RESPONSE 

efficiency  of  voluntary  action,  so  there  are  certain 
conditions  on  which  the  action  power  of  sugges- 
tion depends.  We  shall  enumerate  the  most  im- 
portant of  these  conditions  and  illustrate  them  by 
examples  in  the  field  of  advertising. 


THE  LAWS  OE  SUGGESTION 

1.  Decision  is  only  another  name  for  the  final 
outcome  of  the  rivalry  of  competing  ideas.  It  isy 
then,  important,  in  appealing  over  the  short  cir- 
cuit for  a  specific  line  of  action,  not  to  suggest 
interference,  not  to  suggest  an  opposing  action, 
a  substitute,  a  rival  idea.  Any  such  suggestion 
will  simply  impede  the  action  power  of  the  first 
idea,  by  inviting  comparison  and  making  neces- 
sary a  more  or  less  deliberate  choice.  This  will 
immediately  involve  long  circuit  response,  the  di- 
rect appeal  will  be  reduced  to  "reason  why" 
copy,  and  the  original  purpose  of  the  suggestion 
will  be  defeated.  It  is  not  necessary  to  give  ex- 
amples of  the  violation  or  observance  of  this  law. 

2.  The  strength  of  a  suggestion  will  be  the 
greater  the  more  the  suggestion  appears  to  be  of 
spontaneous  internal  origin.  Every  one  of  us  is 
predisposed  in  favor  of  his  own  ideas.  We  in- 
stinctively resist  encroachment,  domination,  ex- 

224 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

ternal  control.  But  we  welcome  and  magnify  an 
impulse,  a  tendency,  a  line  of  action  that  seems 
to  have  originated  in  our  own  bosom.  For  this 
reason  an  external  suggestion  which  seeks  max- 
imal action  power  should  be  addressed  to  some 
present  interest,  personal  value  or  universal  in- 
stinct. Such  appeals  are  not  readily  recognized  as 
external  and  foreign.  They  are  readily  assimi- 
lated and  transformed  into  personal  intentions. 
Two  common  tendencies  of  current  advertising 
take  advantage  of  this  principle.  One  is  the 
tendency  to  give  news  interest  to  advertising 
copy.  The  advertisement  thus  easily  appears  as 
simply  an  avenue  of  information,  the  beseeching 
or  the  arrogant  tones  are  lost,  and  the  action  sug- 
gested seems  easily  to  be  a  quite  natural  and  mat- 
ter-of-fact intention  of  the  reader.  The  other 
tendency  is  the  constant  use  of  repetition  and 
variation.  By  these  means  the  particular  time 
and  place  of  origin  of  the  suggestion  are  lost.  So 
long  as  I  can  say,  "This  or  that  suggestion  comes 
from  this  or  that  advertisement, ' '  the  appeal  re- 
mains external  and  foreign.  But  when  that  same 
appeal  has  met  me  in  a  score  of  places  and  in  a 
score  of  forms,  the  particular  source  fades  into 
an  indefinite  and  apparently  universal  one,  a  per- 
fectly familiar  one,  so  familiar,  indeed,  that  the 

225 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

suggestion  seems  to  have  been  with  me  all  my  life, 
it  appears  to  be  an  idea  of  my  own,  a  plan  which  I 
have  always  harbored,  and  I  am  surprised  that  I 
have  delayed  its  execution  so  long.  The  growing 
practice  of  signing  advertising  copy  must  cer- 
tainly work  against  this  second  law  of  suggestion, 
and  is  hence  utterly  unsuited  for  direct  appeals, 
though  perhaps  no  impediment  to  "reason  why" 
copy.  The  Hand  Sapolio  crusade  began  with  the 
simple  command  "Be  Clean,' '  expressed  in  vari- 
ous forms  and  places.  The  constant  presence  of 
this  injunction  is  said  to  have  unconsciously 
raised  the  standard  of  personal  cleanliness,  and 
made  a  market  in  the  locality  for  Hand  Sapolio. 
Obviously  if  this  crusade  had  been  flagrantly 
conducted,  or  associated  definitely  with  a  given 
signboard  or  placard,  the  exhortation  would  have 
been  resented,  rather  than  complied  with. 

3.  The  action  power  of  a  suggestion  depends, 
among  other  things,  on  its  actual  intrinsic  in- 
tensity, force  and  vigor.  The  motor  response  to 
an  image  is  not  so  strong  as  that  to  an  actual  im- 
pression. But  the  more  an  image  comes  to  re- 
semble an  impression,  the  more  intense  and  in- 
sistent it  becomes,  the  stronger  becomes  the  re- 
sponse. Hence  the  suggestion  should  be  as  defi- 
nite, pointed,  incisive  and  vigorous  as  it  can  be 

226 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

while  yet  conforming  to  the  second  law.  It  should 
ring  with  confidence,  certainty  and  conviction. 
The  action  suggested  should  be  specific,  clear  and 
full  of  necessity.  Thos.  E.  Dockrell,  in  a 
trenchant  essay  on  this  law,  has  pointed  out  its 
confirmation  in  history,  literature  and  business, 
at  the  same  time  recognizing  the  distinction  be- 
tween "domination"  and  "arrogance" — empha- 
sizing thereby  the  necessity  of  conforming  to  the 
second  law  as  well  as  to  the  third.  See  in  this 
connection  also  Scott's  chapter  on  "The  Direct 
Command. ' ' 

4.  Suggestion  is  most  active  at  its  positive  pole. 
Whenever  possible,  the  human  mind  works  in 
terms  of  positives  rather  than  negatives,  simi- 
larities rather  than  differences,  presences  rather 
than  absences.  Ask  a  group  of  men  to  compare 
twTo  buildings  in  height,  two  noises  in  intensity, 
two  towns  in  size,  two  men  with  respect  to  their 
efficiency.  Nine  out  of  ten  will  tell  you  which  is 
the  highest,  the  loudest,  the  largest  or  the  ablest. 
Only  rarely  will  you  find  a  man  who  thinks  in 
terms  of  shortness,  faintness,  smallness  or  weak- 
ness. Just  as  association  leads  forward  more 
strongly  than  backward,  so  attention,  judgment 
and  interest  are  drawn  to  the  positives,  the  affirm- 
atives,  the   similarities   of  the   world.     We   say 

227 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

things  differ  in  length,  strength,  importance,  not 
in  shortness,  weakness,  insignificance.  Even  when 
an  appeal  is  couched  in  negative  terms,  its  posi- 
tive suggestion  is  more  likely  to  be  realized  than 
its  negative.  The  Old  Covenant  with  its  "Thou 
shalt  not"  had  to  be  replaced  by  the  New  Cove- 
nant with  its  simple  positive  "Thou  shalt. " 

Miinsterberg  tells  a  story  of  an  alchemist  who 
sold  directions  for  turning  eggs  into  gold.  The 
buyer  was  to  hold  a  pan  containing  the  yolks  of  a 
dozen  eggs,  and  stir  these  eggs  for  half  an  hour 
without  ever  thinking  of  the  word  "hippopota- 
mus. ' '  Thousands  tried,  but  none  succeeded  in  re- 
sisting the  positive  suggestion.  The  same  writer 
continues:  "Whether  shop  girls  in  a  department 
store  are  advised  to  ask  after  every  sale  'Do  you 
want  to  take  it  with  you?'  or  'Do  you  want  it 
sent!'  makes  no  difference  to  the  feeling  of  the 
customers,  but  may  mean  for  the  store  a  differ- 
ence of  thousands  for  the  delivery  service." 

5.  The  strength  of  a  suggestion  will  depend 
also  on  the  degree  of  attention  under  which  it 
operates.  This  law  follows  naturally  from  the 
second  and  third  laws  in  which  the  importance  of 
intensity  and  clearness  was  pointed  out.  If  you 
will  recall  the  enumeration  of  the  laws  and  re- 
sults of  attention  vou  will  remember   that  the 

228 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

processes  attended  to  becomes  both  clearer  and 
more  intense  than  it  would  otherwise  be.  And 
since  intensity  and  clearness  influence  to  so 
marked  a  degree  the  action-power  of  a  suggestion, 
the  importance  of  attention  is  obvious. 

Even  when  the  suggestion  is  subliminal,  that 
is,  below  the  threshold  of  consciousness,  it  pos- 
sesses action  power,  and  this  action  power  will 
depend  on  the  variability  or  constancy  of  the  at- 
tention given  to  the  general  field  in  which  the 
stimulus  occurs.  The  writer  has  often  been  told 
by  active  copy  men  that  the  psychological  subtle- 
ties in  advertising  are  a  mere  pastime,  since  the 
genuine  power  of  advertisements  comes  from  the 
unconscious  influence  which  they  exert  on  the 
reader's  mind  rather  than  on  any  conscious  men- 
tal process  set  up.  It  need  only  be  said  that  in 
so  far  as  there  are  such  things  as  unconscious 
suggestions  they  operate  according  to  the  same 
laws  as  do  suggestions  of  which  we  are  keenly 
aware.  These  laws  of  attention,  perception,  in- 
terest, association,  memory,  choice  and  action  ap- 
ply to  both  with  equal  rigor. 

One  of  the  writer's  students  has  recently  per- 
formed experiments  which  clearly  illustrate  the 
dependence  of  even  unconscious  suggestion  on  de- 
gree of  attention.     It  is  a  well-known  fact  that 

229 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

the  addition  of  wing  lines  pointing  in  opposite  di- 
rections may  change  the  apparent  length  of  a 
base  line.    Thus  the  base  line  in  A  seems  longer 


A 


than  in  B,  although  they  are  really  of  the  same 
length.  Practically  everybody  gets  this  illusion, 
which  depends  upon  the  strength  of  some  sugges- 
tion coming  from  the  added  wings.  Take  the 
wings  away  and  the  lines  at  once  appear  equal. 
What  now  would  be  the  result  if  the  wings  were 


B 


really  present,  but  were  drawn  so  faintly  that  the 
observer,  at  the  distance  at  which  he  is  placed 
in  the  experiment,  cannot  detect  them,  but  sees 
only  the  broad  strong  base  line?  The  suggestion 
afforded  by  the  wings  is  present  on  the  retina,  but 
too  faint  and  weak  to  come  to  consciousness.  The 
experiment  here  referred  to  shows  that  even  un- 

230 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

der  these  conditions  17  out  of  20  observers  yield 
to  the  suggestion  and  pronounce  A  longer  than 
B.  Yet  at  the  end  of  the  experiment  of  50  trials 
for  each  observer,  not  one  of  them  even  suspected 
the  presence  of  the  wings.  They  merely  thought 
themselves  to  be  judging  the  length  of  two  sim- 
ple black  lines.  Certain  other  investigators  have 
reported  similar  results. 

But  some  people  get  the  illusion  with  subcon- 
scious wings  more  strongly  and  frequently  than 
others.  The  table  on  page  232  shows  the  per 
cent,  of  the  total  trials  in  which  each  observer 
pronounced  A  to  be  longer  than  B.  In  such  a 
table  50  per  cent,  will  mean  that  no  illusion  is 
present,  but  that,  being  compelled  to  choose  be- 
tween A  and  B,  the  chances  are  even.  But  every 
per  cent,  above  50  will  indicate  the  presence  of 
the  illusion  due  to  the  subconscious  suggestion. 
It  will  be  seen  that  only  three  observers  have  50 
per  cent,  records  or  lower,  the  others  ranging  up- 
ward to  as  high  as  76  per  cent.,  the  average  being 
60  per  cent. 

How  can  we  explain  these  striking  individual 
differences?  Comparison  of  these  records  with 
the  scholarship  record  for  the  course  of  study 
which  these  people  were  taking  at  the  time  shows 
high  correlation  between  the  scholarship  grade 

231 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

and  the  illusion  record.  People  who  get  the  illu- 
sion strongly  are  the  people  with  high  grades, 
people  with  firm  and  steady  attention  habits.  The 
people  whose  illusion  records  are  low  are  those 
whose  scholarship  is  also  low.    The  records  of  the 

TABLE    XII 

Per  Centage  of  Times 
Individual  Illusion  Occurred 

1 76 

2 73 

3 72 

4 68 

5 67 

6 66 

7 66 

8 65 

9 65 

10 63 

11 62 

12 60 

13 58 

14 57 

15 57 

16 52 

17 52 

18 50 

19 50 

20 44 

experimenter  made  during  the  trials  also  show 
that  those  observers  who  paid  close  attention  to 
the  task  were  the  ones  who  were  most  influenced 
by  the  suggestion.  It  follows,  then,  that  even  the 
unconscious  influence  of  appeals  will  depend  on 
the  degree  and  duration  of  attention  to  the  gen- 
eral field  in  which  the  suggestion  appears. 

232 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

6.  The  action  power  of  a  suggestion  will  de- 
pend furthermore  on  the  prestige  of  its  source. 
The  currents  and  trends  of  imitation  in  social 
life  are  perfect  examples  of  this  law.  Custom, 
style,  innovations,  always  trickle  downward  from 
the  higher  social  strata.  The  butler  apes  his  lord- 
ship and  the  sewing  girl  her  mistress.  In  logic 
and  politics  and  many  other  places  the  "argu- 
memtum  ad  hominem"  is  a  dangerous  fallacy. 
This  argument  proceeds  by  saying,  for  instance, 
that  "man  is  immortal  because  Sir  Oliver  Lodge 
says  he  is."  The  more  we  revere  a  speaker  for 
one  reason  or  another,  the  greater  confidence  we 
tend  to  put  in  what  he  has  to  say  on  any  topic 
whatsoever  and  the  more  prone  we  are  to  imitate 
him  and  to  follow  out  his  suggestions.  In  hyp- 
notic experiments,  the  subject,  it  is  said,  must  be 
en  rapport  with  the  operator,  must  have  utter 
confidence  and  faith  in  him  if  the  experiment  is 
to  work. 

Similarly  in  laboratory  tests  of  the  persuasive 
value  of  different  types  of  advertising  copy,  all 
investigators,  Gale,  Scott,  Strong  and  the  writer, 
for  example,  find  that  such  things  as  the  reliabil- 
ity of  the  firm,  the  reputation  for  straight  dealing, 
the  length  of  time  which  the  firm  has  survived 
competition,  etc.,  stand  out  clearly  in  direct  ap- 

233 


k  PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

peals  which  the  experiment  declares  to  be  effec- 
tive. 

7.  Closely  related  to  the  foregoing  principle  is 
the  law  that  the  strength  of  a  suggestion  will  be 
determined  partly  by  the  amount  of  internal  re- 
sistance which  the  suggestion  encounters.  Sug- 
gestions to  violate  lifelong  habits,  firmly  fixed 
moral  feelings,  sacred  relationships,  are  impotent 
even  during  the  hypnotic  trance.  So  in  advertis- 
ing, the  attempt  to  displace  habits,  usages  and 
practices  of  long  standing  by  simple  suggestion, 
affirmation  or  assertion,  is  a  heavy  one.  The  sug- 
gestion will  be  most  effective  when  it  can  call 
to  its  aid  some  other  interest  or  impulse  with 
which  it  can  cooperate. 

8.  Finally,  the  strength  of  a  suggestion  will  de- 
pend on  the  frequency  with  which  it  is  met.  Im- 
pression after  impression  may  summate  them- 
selves to  produce  a  final  intensity  greater  by  far 
than  any  single  stimulus  could  be.  The  role  of 
repetition  in  attention,  interest,  association  and 
memory  we  have  already  pointed  out.  And  here, 
in  the  field  of  action,  we  find  it  to  have  equal  if 
not  even  greater  importance.  No  better  illustra- 
tion of  this  principle  can  be  found  than  the  para- 
ble of  "the  borrowing  friend.' '  The  claims  of 
prestige,  sympathy  and  friendship  all  failed   to 

234 


PROVOKING    THE    RESPONSE 

secure  the  three  loaves,  but  persistence,  simple 
repetition  did  the  work.  "I  say  unto  you, 
though  he  will  not  rise  and  give  him,  because  he 
is  his  friend,  yet  because  of  his  importunity  he 
will  rise  and  give  him  as  many  as  he  needeth" 
(St.  Luke,  XI,  8). 

But  while  repetition  is  effective,  it  is  at  the 
same  time  expensive,  and  hence  should  not  be 
employed  indiscriminately.  Repetition  should  be 
frequent  enough  to  keep  the  appeal  always  fresh 
in  the  memory.  More  than  this  amount  is  likely 
to  be  superfluous.  What,  then,  will  be  the  most 
economical  distribution  of  repetitions?  In  a  gen- 
eral way  it  may  be  said  that  the  distribution  of 
repetitions  should  conform  to  the  normal  curve 
of  forgetting,  which  has  already  been  described. 

But  it  should  be  pointed  out  and  clearly  borne 
in  mind  that  mere  mechanical  repetition  avails 
little  unless  the  repeated  stimulus  is  attended  to 
with  more  or  less  interest.  For  example,  give 
some  one  a  list  of  fifty  words  and  request  him 
to  name,  as  quickly  as  possible,  the  opposites  or 
synonyms  of  all  the  words  on  the  list.  Repeat 
this  day  after  day  until  the  observer  has  read 
through  the  list  say  25  or  50  times.  Then  ask 
him  to  name  or  write  down  the  original  list  of 
stimulus  words   which  the   card  contains.     You 

235 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

may  be  surprised  to  learn  that  only  ten  or  twelve 
of  the  fifty  words  can  be  given  in  three  to  five 
minutes,  and  that  even  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
the  observer  will  be  unable  to  recall  more  than 
about  half  of  the  list.  He  has  repeatedly  read 
through  the  list,  that  is,  mechanical  repetition  has 
been  present,  but  he  has  not  read  with  the  de- 
termination to  remember,  that  is,  his  interest  has* 
not  been  in  the  original  list,  but  in  the  opposites 
or  synonyms  which  he  was  required  to  give.  Now 
give  the  observer  a  new  list  of  words,  ask  him  to 
read  them  through  with  the  intention  of  remem- 
bering them,  and  you  will  find  that  after  a  very 
few  repetitions  he  can  repeat  the  whole  list  cor- 
rectly. Mere  mechanical  repetition,  that  is  to  say, 
is  as  futile  as  mere  mechanical  intensity,  magni- 
tude or  contrast.  Only  when  repetition  is  accom- 
panied by  interest  is  it  likely  to  be  worth  what  it 
costs. 


CHAPTEE   XIII 

INSTINCTS,    THEIR    NATURE    AND    STRENGTH 

In  the  history  of  the  race  certain  objects  or  sit- 
uations in  the  world  have  stood  out  as  funda- 
mentally important  factors  in  the  struggle  for 
survival,  for  supremacy  and  for  comfort.  Fur- 
ther, definite  kinds  of  response  have  been  proven 
to  be  most  appropriate  in  dealing  with  these  ob- 
jects. Individuals  who  have  reacted  promptly 
and  definitely  in  these  appropriate  ways  have 
been  successful,  have  flourished,  and  have  left  de- 
scendants who  possessed  the  same  jnborn  tenden- 
cies to  reaction.  Individuals  who  for  one  reason 
or  another  failed  to  react  in  these  appropriate 
ways  perished.  The  result  has  been  a  constant 
selection  of  those  individuals  who  possess  more 
and  more  firmly  the  natural  mechanical  tendency 
to  react  in  the  way  which  race  history  has  proven 
to  be  appropriate.  These  reactions  in  their  finally 
developed  form  are  called  instincts. 

We  may  look  upon  the  instinct  as  a  very  com- 
plicated reflex  action.    Just  as  the  eyelid  reflexly 

237 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

blinks  when  a  blow  is  struck,  without  the  volition 
of  the  owner,  so  the  organism  behaves  reflexly  in 
definitely  useful  ways  in  the  presence  of  certain 
kinds  of  objects.  The  sight  of  one  boy  sets  up  the 
pugilistic  attitude  on  the  part  of  another.  The 
presence  of  her  child  leads  the  normal  mother  to 
varied  acts  of  caressing,  nursing  and  protecting. 
The  discovery  of  a  rich  gold  deposit  attracts  men 
from  all  parts  of  the  world,  who  dig  out  ore  and 
hide  it  away  in  secret  places,  just  as  a  bird  hides 
pieces  of  twine,  a  water  rat  all  manner  of  stray 
objects.  The  discovery  of  a  remedy  for  a  hitherto 
incurable  disease  sets  all  the  world  a-talking  and 
a-buying. 

These  actions  we  say  come  so  promptly  and 
universally  because  of  the  common  instincts 
which  men  possess,  instincts  of  pugnacity,  rivalry, 
maternal  love,  accumulation,  acquisition,  self-de- 
pendence, curiosity,  play,  construction,  economy, 
sympathy,  imitation,  family  a  flection,  social  co- 
operation, display,  sexual  mating,  hunting,  hospi- 
tality, civic  and  national  pride,  leadership,  etc., 
etc. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  the  advertiser,  the 
important  thing  is  that  if  an  appeal  can  but  touch 
off  one  of  these  instinct  mechanisms  it  is  sure  of 
at    once    possessing    attention    power,    interest, 

238 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 

imagery,  association  and  memory  value,  and  is 
extremely  likely  to  set  up  strong  response.  And 
the  stronger  and  more  universal  the  instinct,  the 
greater  the  likelihood  of  its  effectiveness.  Most 
articles  can  be  described  so  as  to  appeal  to  any 
one  of  a  wide  range  of  instincts.  Thus  an  ordi- 
nary article,  such  as  a  clothes-dryer,  can  be  em- 
phasized as  cheap,  as  safe,  as  popular,  as  home- 
made, as  amusing,  as  clean,  etc.  An  advertise- 
ment of  the  Hill  Clothes  Dryer,  wretchedly 
constructed  from  the  artistic  point  of  view,  never- 
theless presented  an  argument  which  appealed 
strongly  to  the  universal  interest  in  bodily  safety. 
In  an  experiment  on  the  relative  persuasiveness 
of  75  subway  cards  the  writer  found  this  card  to 
be  unanimously  the  most  convincing  of  the  series. 
And  he  is  informed  that  the  copy  has  produced 
gratifying  results  from  the  point  of  view  of  sales. 
Twenty  years  ago  advertisements  failed  to  rec- 
ognize the  specific  character  of  instincts ;  appeals 
tended  to  be  of  a  vague,  generalized  sort  which  in 
our  day  would  pass  unobserved  by  a  busy  public. 
But  the  present  practice  is  more  and  more  to  rec- 
ognize the  specific  instinct  as  a  basis  of  appeal, 
and  to  concentrate  the  appeal  strongly  on  a  single 
instinct  rather  than  to  distribute  it  among  many. 
The  following  pairs  of  advertisements  reprinted 

239 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 


from  Advertising  and  Selling  clearly  show  this 
tendency.  Compare  the  vague,  generalized  copy 
of  1890  with  the  definite  pointed  appeals  of 
twenty  years  later. 

We  shall  take  up,  in  a  moment,  the  question  of 
the  relative  strength  of  these  specific  instincts  as 

ANOTHER  NOTABLE  FEATURE 

New  York  Central  Service 


■v 


'»* 


"ff 


Adirondack 
Golf 

Said  e  pcominrfrt  \r»  Y<*fc 
buwnm  man  ;  "  I  agree 
*.tK  ITcudcM  Tftft  tfcat 
roll  a  m  oflk  best 
investment*  »  bu^inesA  nut 
rma  make.  I  aJ*o  believe* 
tljat  golf  away  from  home 
h  4  ><HtA   .n.olnwnt   I  ban 

£olf  at  home 

I  6nd  perfrrt  coif  in  the  AdiromWfcv  and  know  of  no  ptaee  Wi« 
1  tike  ft>  »f  U  lo  go.  Hfnct  I  hirme  thai  »  hen  1  nark  my  rtoba  and 
OP  up  lo  the  AJirondarkX  ■ .»  lite  New  York  Centra]  bod.  fa*  - 
*«k  or  ao  of  coil.  I  ant  maJunw  what  might  be  railed 

"An  Ideal  Investment" 


'«/ 


*<U1 


5 


** 


.Tn» 


.  K  r»  <o  WQ  ■■  iW  • 


No  Extra  Fare  Charged  on  this  Train. 

araaCnrnJ  Central  Station.  New  Yon    at  10-20  AM.  every  day 

Leavee  Central  Union  Station.  Cincinnati,  at  6-26  P.M.  eveey  day 


iV4 


<_w4  1_— o«J  W— .  M.*  I-*. 


fH-       *.-      «       ■    -.-*      (r-tmi 


JOhh    a*  touc»v, 


OIAND   C(mt**i   STATION    «CW   YORK. 


1890— 


1910 


a  basis  of  appeal  in  advertising.  But  before  pass- 
ing to  this  problem,  it  is  necessary  to  point  out 
another  important  group  of  factors,  which, 
while  they  can  scarcely  be  called  instincts,  yet 
closely  resemble  them  in  character.  The  instinct 
we  are  born  with.  It  is  the  result  of  the  experi- 
ence of  our  ancestors.    But  during  our  own  lives 

240 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 

we  all  come  to  acquire  certain  other  prompt  re- 
actions to  the  particular  things  in  our  experience. 


Of  Omm-  Cars  PuHman  Sleepers  and  Free  Reclining 
Chair  Cs's  between  Ch*cago  and  D§nvef.  Colorado 
Spnnps  »r>d  Pueb*o.  via  St. Jowph  and  via  Kansas  City 
and  Tope^a,  and  bet»*een  Chicago  and  Des  Moines,. 
Council,  B'u'fs  and  Omaha  Faa  Express  Trains  to 
S>ou»  Falls.  Waterto-wn.  Mmneapolrs.  and  St.  Paul,  and 
(vta  St  Joseoh  £»>d  Kansas  City)  to  all  Doints  in  Southern 
Nebraska,  Kansas.  a«d  Oklahoma  The  F^'orile  Lino 
to  aM  Hunting  and  .Filing  Resorts  West.  Choice  of 
Routes  to  and  f'om  the  Pac*<c  Coast.  Alt  modern 
improvements  that  assure  Safety,  Comfort,  and  Lu«ory. 
Excursions  at  Reduced  Ratea.  Free  Transfer*  o'  Tar- 
mmal  Connections,  •«  Grand  Union  Stations. 


Unacquainted  with  th« 
geography*  of -the. 
country,  will-obfairx 
much- Valuable-  ir.fbr- 
mation  •'p-om  •  &•  study 
of-  this-  njaj*-- 


"E*  ST- JOHN 

Oenl.  ANanager 


-  -  -,   I 


pfiGAfeal 


UVv*"'FU*» 


itHMA/t 


r^HH  SEBASTIAN. .  }( 


1800— 


Thus,  the  moment  a  thing  can  be  demonstrated  to 
be  chic,  stylish,  nobby,  modern,  popular,  clean, 
artistic,  imported,  scientifically  made,  guaran- 
teed, elegant,  socially  advantageous,  progressive, 
gentlemanly,    bohemian,    refined,    sporty,    up-to- 

241 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

date,  used  by  some  favorite,  etc.,  etc.,  it  will  at' 
once  find  a  market  of  greater  or  less  extent  and 
permanence. 


"s^V 


rawl  ioosoi2  'Roses    or»e, 
|looming  now  in  California 

There  are  no  cbiilmu*  blasts  no  icy  pBveJnJfJJjs,  no 
blinding    snow  ttorme       1  btee-days  of  happiness  oa 

The  Golden  State  Limited 

via  Rocir  Island  Lines 
and  you  may  revel  in  the  balmy  sunshine  of  California 
afttirj  a  riot  of  flagrant  blossoms. 
Tlie  Koing  is_  not  a  juunuty,  it's  a  >ov.  if  you  u»e  the- 
"Golaen  State  Limited.* 

Ever)'  detail  of  perfect  service  by^  the  route  of  lowest. 
altitude.  Daily  from  Chicago  to  Los- Angeles,  Sa«U 
Barbara  and  San  Francisco.  Annex  car  from  St.  Louis. 
Oth'-r  £t<jj  trains  everyday  from  Chicago,  St.  Louis, 
j.    ia«9  Qty.Oraahaand  Memphis,  with  choice  of  routes. 

J^cLlslaivd-Irisco  I^ines 


loor  life:  ButaDfc  d«- 
ue  and  •trmffrf''*  •J'  ^s.k 


1910 


Let  us  call  these  ideas  effective  conceptions. 
The  general  law  is:  Besides  our  instinctive  ac- 
tions our  conduct  roots  largely  in  a  few  funda- 
mental   conceptions,    ideas,    values,    standards, 

which  we  apply  as  action  criteria.     The  moment 

04.9 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 


an  appeal,  a  suggestion,  an  object,  can  be  classi- 
fied under  one  or  other  of  these  headings,  our  at- 
titude toward  it  is  determined.  Throw  an  at- 
mosphere of  elegance,  of  style  or  of  healthfulness 


£$£)  Seeing 
is 
Believing 

"Actions  alwayi  speak  louder  than  wordy" 

-    and  (or  this  reason  WILLIAMS*  SHAV- 
ING  STICK  is  its  own  best  advocate.     It 
tells  its  own  story — an  enchanting  talc  to  every  shaver. 

Perhaps  vou.  have  been  using  some  other  kind  ; 
found-  it  good,  too,  maybe.  But  there  arc  degrees  pf  good- 
ness, and  the  gk>ry  ol  Williams'  Shaving  StKk.  is  that 
U  u  the  EEST 

Is  it  true*  We  certainly  do  rtot  Jttten- 
t  tonally  misrepresent  matters.  Thousands  upon-  thou- 
ands  are  using  it — who  used  other  kinds  before  we  intro- 
duced it — and  t&ey  say  it  excels  any  fA,y  have  lltcd,  and 
are  strong  in  their  expressions  o(  praise  ol  it. 

But  -string  is  UliC*vin^'  and  the 
only  way  (or  vou  to  know  about  Williams' 
Shaving  Stick  is  to  try  ./  yourself. 

An  examination  of  the  btautilul 
case  (leatherette  cnncr.gold-latgjiicfid  interior] 
and  of  the  delicate  ru«--scentrd.  cream-colcmd 
soap. and  an  ipplttat-on  of  the  delicious. err ,im- 
likc  lather  upon  your  (ace.  will  Tt.ible  y-'u  to 
judge     Will  yoitmakc  ihr>4-wnfnafion? 


AJd^    The  J.  B.  WILLIAMS  CO.,  Clastonburv  .«o««.. 


1890— 


^^^6^/?//?c 


iams 


Titt    f    *     YfiiA  1M*">    '• 
at  William*'  f*mo\*e  ih«»li 


After 
Baby's  Bath 

apply  Wtirtttcs,'  Talcum 
Powder.  Use  it  freely  on 
neck.  at  joints  and  in  .'II 
folds  and  cutlets  of  the 
skin.  It  will  prevent  and 
alleviate  chafing,  prickly 
heat  and  other  irritations 
common  to  infants,  impart 
a  velvety  softness  to  the 
skin  and  prove  delightfully 
soothing  and  refreshing. 

Williams'  is  a  delicately 
perfumed  talc  powder,  ab- 
solutely pure  and  of  almost 
impalpable  fineness,  the 
new  Iwix  with  hinged  cmer 
and  perforated  top  avoids 
the  annoyance  of  turning 
and  sticking  and  prevenis 
leaking  of  the  powder  anil 
escape  of  the 
perfume. 

Two  odors 

Violet 

'Hid 

Carnation 

a  Stiefc.  J»r«.r  Crc.m  T«H«t  SO*^.-«*? 


1910 


about  clothing,  breakfast  foods,  soaps,  musical 
instruments,  etc.,  as  the*  case  may  be,  and  the 
reader  will  at  once  react  to  it  by  "short  circuit' ' 
response,  either  favorably  or  unfavorably,  accord- 
ing as  the  conception  used  is  in  his  particular  case 
effective  or  weak.  Since  these  effective  concep- 
tions are  in  their  action  similar  to  instincts,  we 
may  group  the  two  together  in  our  attempt  to 
learn    how    these    differ    among    themselves    in 

243 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

strength  and  action-power,  how  these  differences 
vary  with  sex,  age,  class,  occupation,  commodity, 
etc.  We  must  say  to  begin  with  that  this  is  at 
present  a  field  which  is  almost  unworked  experi- 
mentally. General  comments  and  opinions  are 
abundant,  and  they  are  just  about  as  reliable  as 
such  random  observations  usually  are.  The  ex- 
perimental results  which  we  shall  report  will, 
then,  represent  pioneer  investigations  of  their 
kind,  and  must  be  held  subject  to  such  modifica- 
tion and  correction  as  later  investigation  shall 
suggest. 

So  far  we  have  emphasized  only  the  principles 
controlling  the  direct  appeal  to  "  short  circuit"  re- 
sponse. There  remains  yet  the  "reason  why"  ap- 
peal to  comparison,  argument  and  deliberate 
choice,  to  the  "long  circuit"  action  of  reason.  It 
is  evidently  impossible  to  say  in  general  terms 
what  sorts  of  arguments,  what  methods  of  rea- 
soning, what  sort  of  "selling  points"  or  "rea- 
sons" will  be  effective.  These  facts  will  vary 
with  the  type  of  article  advertised,  with  the  type 
of  man  appealed  to,  and  with  the  actual  points  of 
superiority  which  the  goods  may  chance  to  pos- 
sess. But  it  may  be  said  that  even  in  our  reason- 
ing it  is  the  appeal  to  our  own  point  of  view, 
our  own  dominant  instincts,  conceptions,  values, 

244 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 

liabits  and  needs  that  constitutes  the  most  effec- 
tive argument.  The  answer  to  the  question  of  the 
relative  value  of  types  of  argument,  selling 
points,  etc.,  may  then  be  left  to  the  experiments 
which  are  to  follow. 

Since  the  short  circuit  appeal  is  based  on  the 
fact  that  human  beings  are  equipped  with  cer- 
tain instinctive  tendencies  to  react  in  definite 
ways  toward  particular  objects  or  situations,  it 
follows  that  this  type  of  appeal  is  particularly 
adapted  to  the  case  of  certain  commodities — to 
those  types  of  articles  toward  which  or  toward 
the  use  or  services  of  which  we  react  with  prompt- 
ness, certainty,  and  feeling.  And  since  acquired 
habits  come  to  resemble  instincts  in  these  re- 
spects, we  may  include  both  habits  and  instincts 
as  the  basis  of  the  short  circuit  appeal.  In  a 
general  way  we  may  say  that  the  following  prin- 
ciples are  true. 

The  short  circuit  appeal  (display  advertise- 
ment, appeal  to  instinct,  feeling  and  habit)  is  well 
adapted : 

1.  For  all  personal  articles,  the  use  of  which 
is  intimate  and  private,  as  toilet  articles,*  gifts, 
stationery,  etc. 

2.  For  articles  of  luxury,  display,  and  adorn- 

245 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

nient,  as  jewelry,  fancy  dress  goods,  feathers  and 
plumes,  flowers,  etc. 

3.  For  articles  enjoyed  in  themselves  or  for 
their  own  sake,  rather  than  for  remote  service 
which  they  may  render,  as  drinks,  musical  instru- 
ments, sweetmeats,  toys,  etc. 

4.  For  articles  calculated  to  promote  the  bod- 
ily safety  of  the  individual  or  of  those  dependent 
on  him,  as  disinfectants,  safety  devices,  insur- 
ance, weapons  of  defence,  etc. 

5.  For  all  food  products. 

6.  For  all  clothing  which  tends  to  be  orna- 
mental rather  than  utilitarian  in  character,  as 
ties,  collars,  laces,  canes,  etc. 

The  long  circuit  appeal  (reason  why  copy,  ar- 
gument, comparative  statement  of  advantages, 
etc.)  may  also  be  used  to  reinforce  the  strength 
of  many  of  the  short  circuit  appeals  used  in  such 
cases  as  those  just  enumerated.  But  it  is  espe- 
cially fitted,  by  its  nature  and  by  the  way  in  which 
it  will  be  reacted  to,  for  articles  which  are  the  re- 
verse of  these  in  character ;  for  articles  which  are 
in  themselves,  or  from  the  use  to  which  they  are 
put,  impersonal,  utilitarian,  instrumental ;  and  for 
articles  which  are  intended  not  so  much  to  fill 
present  needs  only,  but  also  to  create  new  needs 
or  desires — such  articles  as  books,  plows,  buttons, 

246 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 

hammers,  trucks,  etc. — in  general,  to  those  things 
which  partake  of  the  nature  of  a  tool. 

It  is  further  true  that  not  all  instincts  are 
equally  strong,  not  all  habits  equally  coercive. 
This  being  the  case,  information  concerning  the 
relative  strength  of  various  possible  appeals  to 
interest,  attention,  instinct  and  response  tenden- 
cies is  desirable.  To  men  who  desire  to  make  their 
copy  or  their  selling  talk  effective,  and  at  the 
same  time  economical,  the  question  of  the  relative 
strength  of  appeals,  instincts,  interests  and  effec- 
tive habits  is  a  live  one.  The  writer  has  repeat- 
edly been  asked  by  such  men  to  state  the  relative 
strength  of  various  appeals  in  the  case  of  the 
average  man — to  say  in  how  far  certain  interests 
are  universal,  to  what  degree  certain  general 
types  are  pronounced,  and  how  they  are  dis- 
tributed and  conditioned  by  age,  sex,  race,  etc. 
The  practical  man  expects  the  expert  psycholo- 
gist to  possess  such  information,  and  he  has  the 
right  to  expect  much  more  than  we  are  at  present 
able  to  tell  him. 

Only  one  or  two  fragmentary  attempts  have 
been  made  to  answer  such  questions  experi- 
mentally. Thus  Harlow  Gale  studied  a  series  of 
soap  advertisements  by  the  method  of  question- 
naire and  voluntary  introspection.     His  results, 

247 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 


when  worked  over  into  terms  of  relative  position, 
would  yield  some  such  result  as  the  following. 
The  smaller  the  number  the  higher  the  position, 
hence  the  stronger  the  appeal. 


TABLE   XIII 


Appeal 


Purity  by  government's  test 

Old  firm.... 

Home  industry 

"Attractiveness" 

Special  sale 

Souvenir  prize 


Relative  Position 


2.29 
2.11 
3.49 
3.49 
4.06 
3.47 


The  manager  of  a  western  magazine,  as  re- 
ported by  Scott,  secured  thousands  of  replies 
from  readers  as  to  which  advertisement  for  a 
given  month  had  interested  them  most,  and  why. 
The  following  table  resulted: 

TABLE   XIV 


Reason 


Reliability  of  firm  or  goods 

Money  considerations,  cheapness . . . 

Beauty  of  the  advertisement 

Presented  goods  needed  at  the  time 


Number  of 
replies 


607 
508 
418 
40S 


Obviously  such  meager  and  generalized  results 
are  of  little  value.    What  is  needed  is  a  series  of 

248 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 


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249 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

rigorous  test  experiments,  under  conditions  which 
are  constant,  and  by  methods  which  will  afford 
comparative  numerical  measures. 

Strong  has  reported  experiments  designed  to 
determine  the  relative  value  of  various  argu- 
ments in  favor  of  a  given  type  of  commodity  by 
securing  typical  advertisements  of  such  articles 
and  using  the  methods  which  were  referred  to  in 
the  first  chapter  of  this  book  and  which  are  to  be 
described  in  detail  in  the  chapter  which  is  to  fol- 
low. His  studies  include  such  special  articles  as 
vacuum  cleaners,  pianos,  breakfast  foods,  and 
soaps.  An  interesting  presentation  and  interpre- 
tation of  his  results  is  given  in  his  doctor's  dis- 
sertation on  "The  Relative  Merits  of  Advertise- 
ments." The  preceding  tabulation  of  the  results 
of  the  series  of  breakfast  food  appeals  will  serve 
as  an  example  of  the  suggestive  information 
which  such  experiments  yield. 

Studies  of  the  sort  reported  by  Gale,  Scott  and 
Strong  (some  of  Strong's  experiments  have  been 
subsequently  repeated  and  confirmed  by  Starch, 
with  clothing  advertisements)  are  especially  use- 
ful as  pointing  the  way  toward  the  possibility  of 
a  complete  exploration  of  the  range  of  human  in- 
terests and  instincts.  In  the  following  chapter 
will  be  given  an  account  of  such  an  attempt,  which 

250 


INSTINCTS,  THEIR  NATURE  AND  STRENGTH 

in  point  of  time  antedated  the  experiments  of 
Strong  and  Starch,  but  which  logically  follows 
upon  them.  We  shall  there  present  a  series  of 
measurements  which  apply,  not  to  special  articles, 
but  to  all  articles  in  general,  arranged  in  such  a 
way  that  the  relative  value  of  various  appeals  for 
any  specified  commodity  may  be  approximately 
determined  by  reference  to  the  larger  table. 

It  should  be  said  here  that  we  are  not  inter- 
ested, in  this  connection,  with  the  strength  of  the 
various  instincts  and  interests  in  phases  of  life 
other  than  that  of  the  business  transaction.  Nor 
can  knowledge  of  the  strength  of  the  various  in- 
stinctive tendencies  as  they  display  themselves  in 
the  home,  the  school,  or  in  sport,  serve  as  a  basis 
for  determination  of  the  strength  of  the  same  in- 
stinctive tendencies  when  they  constitute  reac- 
tions to  business  appeals.  Thus  one  might  be  ex- 
ceedingly vain  and  much  concerned  with  his  per- 
sonal appearance  in  a  general  way,  and  yet  mis- 
trust appeals  in  the  way  of  advertisements  and 
selling  talks  based  upon  such  an  instinct.  One 
might  be  sedulously  careful  of  his  health,  so  far 
as  his  own  activity  might  be  concerned,  and  yet 
mistrust  assertions  of  the  health-promoting  qual- 
ities of  any  advertised  article  of  commerce.    And 

251 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

an  individual  with  strong  imitative  tendencies 
with  respect  to  his  general  behavior  might  yet 
refuse  to  adopt  a  given  article  or  style  of  dress 
merely  because  some  favorite  opera  singer  or 
public  official  had  recommended  it. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE   EELATIVE    STRENGTH   OF    THE    CHIEF 
INSTINCTS    AND    INTERESTS 

Before  taking  up  the  main  topic  of  this  chap- 
ter, it  will  be  well  to  consider  in  some  detail  the 
method  by  which  the  results  here  presented  were 
secured.  We  have  frequently  had  occasion  to  re- 
fer to  methods  of  measuring  the  strength  of  such 
subjective  things  as  the  strength  of  appeals,  the 
persuasiveness  of  advertisements,  etc.  How, 
now,  is  it  possible  to  measure  these  subjective  fac- 
tors, so  long  as  there  is  no  objective  scale  with 
which  they  may  be  compared?  A  few  illustra- 
tions may  throw  light  on  the  problem. 

Suppose  that  I  have  in  my  laboratory  a  series 
of  weights  which  differ  from  each  other  by  very 
small  amounts.  Suppose,  further,  that  I  desire 
to  know  the  relative  weight  of  the  members  of 
the  series,  but  have  no  balance  with  which  to 
weigh  them,  and  that  the  differences  between 
those  most  like  each  other  are  so  small  that  I  can- 
not absolutely  trust  to  my  judgments  when  I  lift 

253 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

the  weights  in  my  hand  and  compare  them  with 
each  other.  I  may  be  led  to  mistrust  my  judg- 
ments  because  I  do  not  always  judge  consistently, 
or  because  the  judgments  of  other  people  in  the 
laboratory  disagree  somewhat  with  mine.  These 
conditions  being  given,  is  it  possible  for  me  in  any 
way  to  determine  with  certainty  the  order  of  the 
weights  as  that  order  would  turn  out  if  a  balance 
were  available  1  The  answer  is  that  it  is  not  only 
possible,  but  at  the  same  time  very  easily  accom- 
plished. All  I  need  to  do  is  to  let  a  large  number  of 
people,  say  twenty  different  individuals,  arrange 
the  weights  in  what  seem  to  them  to  be  the  order 
of  their  relative  heaviness,  when  lifted  in  the 
hand.  Then  taking  the  average  of  the  twenty 
judgments  of  each  weight  in  the  series,  I  derive  a 
final  order  based  on  the  combined  judgments  of 
the  twenty  observers.  This  final  order  will  be 
found  to  coincide  with  the  order  of  heaviness  as 
determined  by  the  balances,  when  such  are  avail- 
able. Anyone  who  doubts  may  easily  satisfy  him- 
self by  trying  the  experiment.  If  there  are,  say, 
seven  weights  in  the  series,  and  five  different  in- 
dividuals pass  judgments  upon  them,  some  such 
table  as  the  one  on  page  255  will  result: 

The  order  of  heaviness,  as  determined  by  the 
judgments  of  the  group  of  observers,  is  seen  to 

254 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 


afford  a  correct  statement  of  the  real  relative 
heaviness  of  the  series  of  weights.  The  objective 
scale  (the  balance)  is  unnecessary.  We  have  used 
it  here  only  in  order  to  check  up  the  order  as  de- 

TABLE   XVI 

Typical  Table  Resulting  from  Order  of  Merit  Method 


The 

Weights 


65  grams 
63  grams 
61  grams 
59  grams 
57  grams 
55  grams 
53  grams 


Position  in  order  of  weight,  as 
judged  by  five  persons 


7 
6 
4 
5 
3 
1 
2 


6 
7 
5 
4 
2 
3 
1 


7 
6 
4 
5 
3 
2 
1 


7 
6 
5 
3 
4 
2 
1 


7 
5 
6 
4 
3 
1 
2 


Average 
Position 


6.8 
6.0 
4.8 
4.2 
3.0 
1.8 
1.4 


Order  of 
Heaviness 


1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 


termined  by  the  judgments.  In  the  same  way  it 
is  possible  to  determine  the  order  of  intensity  of 
a  series  of  sounds,  the  relative  legibility  of  speci- 
mens of  handwriting,  the  relative  length  of  lines 
differing  only  slightly  from  each  other,  the  rela- 
tive excellence  of  literary  compositions,  the  rela- 
tive eminence  of  scientific  men,  the  relative  per- 
suasiveness of  selling  talks,  the  pulling  power  of 
advertisements,  the  strength  of  various  appeals 
to  instincts  and  interests. 

It  must  be  noted  that  in  the  experiment  on  the 
series  of  weights,  I  do  not  ask  my  observers  to  ar- 
range the  weights  in  the  order  in  which  they  think 

255 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

they  would  appear  to  some  other  individual,  nor 
in  the  order  in  which  they  think  they  would  ap- 
pear to  people  in  general,  nor  even  in  the  order 
in  which  they  think  the  weights  would  be  shown 
to  stand  when  measured  on  the  balance.  I  in- 
struct each  individual,  "Arrange  the  weights  in 
the  order  of  heaviness  as  they  seem  to  you  when 
you  consider  them.  Arrange  them  in  the  order  in 
which  they  affect  you  when  you  lift  them. ' '  Simi- 
larly, if  I  am  studying  a  series  of  advertisements, 
I  do  not  say:  "Arrange  these  appeals  in  order 
according  to  the  way  in  which  you  think  they 
would  affect  other  people,"  but  I  say:  "Here 
are  a  series  of  appeals.  Arrange  them  in  order 
according  to  the  degree  to  which  they  make  you 
desire  the  article,  or  interest  you  in  it,  or  incline 
you  favorably  toward  it."  That  is  to  say,  I  do 
not  ask  him  to  judge  whether  or  not  the  various 
appeals  are  good  advertisements  (persuasive  to 
people  in  general).  Similarly,  if  I  am  studying  a 
series  of  landscapes,  I  do  not  ask  my  observers  to 
arrange  them  in  the  order  of  beauty  as  they  think 
other  people  would  be  affected  by  them.  I  merely 
say:  "Which  picture  is  most  beautiful  to  you? 
Put  it  at  the  top.  Which  of  the  remaining  ones 
is  most  beautiful?  Put  it  next  in  order,  etc." 
But  my  final  orders  of  merit  will  represent  the 

256 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

way  in  which  people  as  a  whole,  in  general,  on 
the  average,  or  in  the  long  run,  will  react  to  the 
objects  studied.  Or  if  any  objective  measurement 
is  possible,  the  final  order  will  coincide  with  these 
objective  measurements.  In  other  words,  the  de- 
terminations afforded  by  the  experimental 
methods  are  true  measures  of  the  qualities  or 
traits  investigated. 

This  is  the  method  which  was  used  in  measur- 
ing the  relative  pulling  power  of  the  different 
series  of  advertisements  discussed  in  the  first 
chapter  of  this  book.  And  it  was  there  shown 
that  the  results  of  the  laboratory  tests  actually 
enabled  us  to  know  in  advance  the  relative  order 
of  pulling  power  of  the  advertisements  when  they 
were  used  in  business.  It  should  be  said  further, 
that,  by  the  use  of  the  proper  precision  and  sta- 
tistical method,  it  is  not  only  possible  to  deter- 
mine the  relative  order  of  these  subjective  fac- 
tors, but  to  measure  the  amount  of  difference  be- 
tween the  various  members  of  the  series.  A  dis- 
cussion of  these  further  refinements  of  the 
method  would  involve  more  technicality  than  it  is 
the  purpose  of  this  book  to  contain.  Eeaders 
who  may  be  interested  in  knowing  more  about  the 
method,  its  history,  applications,  and  possibili- 
ties, may  be  referred  to  Strong's  monograph  en- 

257 


PRINCIPLES  07    APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

titled  "The  Relative  Merits  of  Advertisements. " 
This  monograph  consists  of  the  elaboration  and 
justification  of  the  method  here  described,  with 
applications.  Thorndike's  "Mental  and  Social 
Measurements,,  gives  a  useful  account  of  the  sta- 
tistical and  mathematical  points  involved  in  such 
measurements. 

Having  given  this  brief  description  and  justifi- 
cation of  the  laboratory  method,  we  are  now 
ready  for  the  results  of  an  extensive  experiment 
on  the  strength  of  such  appeals  as  may  be  used  in 
various  business  situations.  In  order  to  get  at 
the  strength  of  the  appeal  in  itself,  and  independ- 
ently of  any  particular  article  or  brand  in  connec- 
tion with  which  it  might  appear,  abstract  appeals 
h^ve  been  used,  which  referred  not  to  any  com- 
modity in  particular,  but  to  an  ideal,  imaginary 
article,  designated  by  an  abstract  symbol,  such  as 
3K7.  The  value  of  abstracting  from  particular 
commodities  will  be  pointed  out  after  the  results 
have  been  given.  Fifty  abstract  appeals,  each  de- 
signed to  reach  a  definite  and  different  interest, 
instinct,  or  line  of  argument,  were  prepared. 
These  appeals  were  typewritten  on  separate  slips 
of  paper,  and  presented  without  being  accom- 
panied by  picture  or  illustration.  In  addition  to 
the  statement  of  the  appeal,  each  card  bore  a  sin- 

258 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

gle  word  or  pair  of  words,  designed  to  emphasize 
the  specific  character  and  direction  of  the  appeal, 
to  reinforce  the  suggestion  or  argument  offered 
by  the  text  itself,  and  to  insure,  in  so  far  as  pos- 
sible, the  same  attitude  on  the  part  of  all  the  ob- 
servers in  the  presence  of  the  respective  appeals. 
By  employing  such  material  the  following  results 
were  secured: 

1.  Each  appeal  tends  to  be  single  and  uncom- 
plicated by  other  interests. 

2.  Each  is  divorced  from  reactions  to  any  ar- 
ticle or  brand  as  such. 

3.  The  elimination  of  illustrations  and  the 
use  of  the  same  general  style  and  expres- 
sion lends  homogeneity  to  the  group  of  ap- 
peals. 

4.  A  wide  range  of  specialized  isolated  ap- 
peals is  secured,  which  fairly  represents 
the  possible  range  of  appeal  afforded  by 
human  nature. 

The  series  of  50  appeals  was  given  to  each  ob- 
server, along  with  the  following  printed  direc- 
tions. 

DIRECTIONS 

(Read  these  directions  two  times,  carefully,  before 
beginning  the  experiment.) 

259 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

This  is  an  experiment  in  the  psychology  of  adver- 
tising. Its  purpose  will  be  explained  after  you  have 
finished  the  series.  Each  card  contains  an  advertise- 
ment of  some  fictitious  article,  indicated  by  a  letter- 
numeral  symbol  (thus,  3K7).  It  need  make  no  differ- 
ence what  the  article  might  really  be.  It  may  be  well 
to  assume  that  all  the  cards  advertise  different  brands 
or  makes  of  the  same  article, — some  ideal,  imaginary 
article,  to  which  any  or  all  of  the  advertisements  might 
apply. 

I.  Read  all  the  advertisements  through  and  arrange 
them  in  five  consecutive  piles,  in  an  order  of  merit, — 
according  to  their  persuasiveness,  i.  e.,  according  to  the 
degree  in  which  they  make  you  desire  the  article  or 
convince  you  of  its  merit. 

There  will  thus  be  five  degrees  of  persuasiveness, 
which  might  be  roughly  designated: 


1.  Most  persuasive. 

2.  Very  persuasive. 

3.  Fairly  persuasive. 

4.  Mildly  persuasive. 

5.  Least  persuasive. 


Arrange  the  five  piles  in  a  row  so  that  Group  1  is  at 
the  top,  Group  5  at  the  bottom,  and  the  three  other 

260 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

groups  in  their  respective  positions  between  these  ex- 
tremes. 

II.  Having  done  this  turn  to  the  top  pile  (Group  1) 
and  arrange  the  advertisements  in  that  group  in  a  strict 
order  of  merit, — the  strongest  in  the  pile  thus  getting 
the  first  position,  the  next  strongest  the  second  position, 
and  so  on. 

After  the  top  pile  is  arranged,  treat  each  of  the  other 
groups  in  the  same  manner.  In  this  way  the  whole 
series  of  advertisements  will  have  been  arranged  in  an 
order  of  merit  series  with  respect  to  their  persuasive- 
ness,— with  the  most  persuasive  at  the  top  and  the  least 
persuasive  at  the  bottom. 

III.  Without  disturbing  your  arrangement  of  the 
Groups,  notify  the  experimenter  that  you  have  com- 
pleted the  series. 

The  50  different  appeals  follow,  arranged  in  a 
final  order  of  merit  for  a  group  of  40  observers, 
consisting  of  20  men  and  20  women.  The  first 
pair  of  figures  gives  the  average  value  and  mean 
variation  for  the  women,  the  second  pair  the 
measures  for  the  men. 

1.  1K6— SCIENTIFIC  :— Our  1K6  article  is  man- 
ufactured by  approved  scientific  methods  and 
by  scientifically  tested  processes,  by  technically 

261 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

trained  men,  working  under  the  constant  super- 
vision of  experts. 

2—9.1 ;  2—8.4 

2.  1W5— DURABILITY :— Combine  utility  with 

durability    by    using    1W5.      It    lasts    one-third 

longer   than   the   ordinary    article.      Stands   the 

wear  and  tear  of  constant  use,  combining  equal 

quality    with    greater    permanence    and    longer 

service. 

1—8.2 ;  6—8.0 

3.  1F3  —  SANITARY :— This  is  the  only  sanitary 
1F3  on  the  market.  Put  up  in  germ-proof,  dust- 
proof,  hermetically  sealed  packages,  and  made 
of  strictly  pure  and  unadulterated   ingredients. 

5—7.7;  3—10.5 

4.  2D8— EFFICIENCY :— Actual  energy,  earn- 
ing power,  is  what  counts  in  modern  business. 
The  day  is  past  when  recognition  rested  on  pull 
and  social  influence.  2D8  will  increase  your  effi- 
ciency 25%.  By  no  other  means  can  you  secure 
such  prompt  and  sure  increase  of  producing  ca- 
pacity. 

7—12.8;  8—13.7 

262 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

5.  1T8—  TIME :— Save  the  minutes  and  the 
hours  will  save  themselves.  Time  is  money.  Our 
latest  1T8  is  the  biggest  time  saver  on  the  mar- 
ket. Does  in  twenty  minutes  what  requires,  with 
other  brands,  a  half  an  hour. 

3—8.6 ;  14—12.2 

6.  1N6— APPETIZING :— Try  1N6.  It  comes 
fresh  from  the  field  and  its  appetizing  flavor  is 
a  treat  to  the  palate.  It  makes  a  dainty  break- 
fast, a  delightful  luncheon,  and  a  delicious  des- 
sert. 

13—8.9;  5—8.8 

7.  2B7— FAMILY  AFFECTION:— A  final  day 
must  come  to  every  man,  and  no  one  wants  to  see 
his  children  left  dependent  on  mere  accident. 
You  owe  a  duty  of  provision  and  foresight  to 
your  family.  A  2B7  will  guarantee  this  comfort 
and  security  when  you  are  gone. 

17—13.5;   1—7.7 

8.  1Z5, — VALUE  : — Absolutely  superior  quality 
and  finer  finish.  1Z5  may  cost  a  little  more,  but 
it's  worth  the  difference.  One  trial  will  con- 
vince. 

4—7.3 ;  16—10.1 
263 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

9.  2L7  —  EVOLUTION :— Our  latest  2L7  is  the 
result  of  generations  of  experience  and  experi- 
ment. After  years  of  trial  2L7  stands  distinctly 
in  a  class  by  itself  as  the  final  product  of  a  long 
evolution, — the  climax  of  mechanical  genius. 

11—10.9;  12—9.1 

10.  2C8,— AMBITION:— There's  always  room 
higher  up.  Capable  leaders  are  always  in  de- 
mand. Why  stay  among  the  incompetent  when 
2C8  will  bring  you  a  better  position  and  increase 
your  salary.  The  man  who  uses  2C8  is  sure  of 
recognition  and  rapid  promotion. 

6—10.9;  18—13.5 

11.  2F6  —  SELF-DEFENSE  :— Forearmed  is  fore- 
warned. Your  life  is  always  threatened  by  some 
lurking  danger  or  another.  With  2F6  in  your 
home  you  are  always  secure  and  able  to  protect 
the  rights  and  person  of  yourself  and  of  those 
whose  safety  is  your  chief  concern. 

15_9.7;  10—11.3 

12.  1R4  —  REPUTATION :— Established  in  1870, 
we  have  been  for  40  years  the  leading  manufac- 
turers of  1R4  in  the  country. 

264 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

We  have  the  longest  and  most  enviable  record 
of  any  house,  in  our  line,  on  the  continent. 

9—12.8;  21—12.0 

13.  2E9,  —  GUARANTEED  :— Our  well  -  known 
trade-mark  guarantees  quality  and  satisfaction. 

All  our  2E9  is  strictly  warranted  high  grade. 
Your  money  refunded  if  2E9  does  not  accomplish 
all  we  claim  for  it. 

10—12.7;  20—11.4 

14.  1P5  —  STIMULATING :— 1P5  fortifies  the 
body  against  the  inroads  of  toil  and  disease, 
gives  new  life  and  vigor  to  tired  muscles  and 
nerves,  and  removes  unnecessary  strain  and  fa- 
tigue. 

12—9.6;  41—19.4 

15.  1V3  —  SAFETY:— Avoid  danger  by  using  the 
only  absolutely  safety-built,  accident-proof  1V3. 
Do  not  court  danger  by  taking  chances.  This  is 
the  only  1V3  in  which  you  get  all  the  protection 
and  none  of  the  risk. 

26—11.5;  7—10.2 

16.  1E5— POPULAR :— The  name  is  on  all 
tongues.    You  will  find  1E5  in  the  ladies'  dress- 

265 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

ing-room,  in  the  scholar's  study,  in  the  nursery, 
in  kitchens  of  the  humble,  in  crowded  Eastern 
cities  and  on  limitless  Western  plains.  Used  in 
millions  of  homes  and  everywhere  it  is  on  top. 

29—13.2;  4—9.9 

17.  2R5,— ECONOMIZE :— A  dollar  saved  is  a 
dollar  earned.  2R5  will  save  you  money.  Why 
not  cut  down  expense  items  and  start  a  bank  ac- 
count.   2R5  will  help  you  do  it. 

14—8.0;  19—7.3 

18.  1Q3— MATERNAL  LOVE  :— Nothing  is  too 

good  for  baby.     1Q3  comforts  and  soothes  the 

little  chap  and  makes  of  babyhood  one  happy 

play  time.     Assures  the   children's   health  and 

enjoyment. 

18—11.4;  15—11.8 

19.  1J4— MODERNITY:— Strictly  up-to-date  de- 
sign with  all  the  latest  improvements.  1J4  is 
equipped  with  every  advantage  and  ingenious 
device  known  to  recent  invention. 

22—8.8;  13—11.6 

20.  1C3,— HE ALTH :— As  a  general  tonic,  1C3  is 
unequaled.     It  nourishes  the  system,  enriches  the 

266 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

blood,  builds  up  firm,  healthy  tissue  and  gives 
tone  and  color  to  the  whole  body.  Prevents 
grippe  and  pneumonia. 

8—10.9;  30—15.6 

21.  1X9,— QUALITY :— Why  keep  on  wasting 
money  when  for  the  price  of  the  ordinary  article 
you  can  get  our  own  superior  1X9.  Goes  far- 
ther and  does  the  work  better  than  any  other. 

16—12.5;  22—9.5 

22.  1A7,— ELEGANCE  :— Nothing  contributes  so 
strongly  to  the  luxurious  comfort  of  the  modern 
home  as  1A7.  Its  presence  gives  dignity  and 
elegance  to  the  whole  and  creates  an  atmosphere 
of  daintiness  and  distinction. 

30—10.9;  11—10.3 

23.  1G2— BARGAIN:— No  1G2  was  ever  offered 

before  for  the  money.  As  good  as  any  others 
and  only  two-thirds  their  cost.     We  are  enabled 

to  offer  this  proposition  only  by  virtue  of  our 

mammoth  plant  and   enormous  capacity.     Why 

pay  more? 

28—11.0;  17—12.0 

267 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

24.  2Q7,— SYMPATHY :— Kindness  is  the  first 
law  of  humanity.  Much  of  the  pain  and  discom- 
fort inflicted  on  dumb  animals  could  be  relieved 
by  using  2Q7.     Be  humane  to  your  beast.    Use 

2Q7. 

37—15.3 ;  9—9.9 

25.  208— NECESSARY:— You  cannot  afford  to 
do  without  208.  It  is  indispensable  in  your 
home,  in  your  business,  in  your  recreation.  Every 
man,  woman  and  child  needs  it  constantly. 

20—8.2;  27—14.0 

26.  2W8— MIDDLEMEN :— Why  pay  middle- 
men 's  profit  ?  Buy  direct  from  the  manufacturer 
and  keep  the  profits  yourself.  We  make  2W8 
and  ship  straight  to  the  consumer. 

23—11.7 ;  26—10.4 

27.  2Z7— COURTESY:— Nothing  is  more  dis- 
courteous than  an  offensive  breath. 

2Z7  cleanses  the  system,  purifies  the  blood  and 
sweetens  the  breath. 

27—10.1 ;  25—12.0 

28.  2T9— REMARKABLE  GROWTH:— The  su- 
perior quality  of  2T9  is  demonstrated  by  the 
rapid  development  of  our  business. 

268 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

Total  Capital,   1890,—     $15,273.00 

1895,—       85,896.00 

1900—     240,142.00 

"  «         1905,—     703,279.00 

1910—  3,875,639.00 

19—16.3 ;  36—11.5 

29.  1S6,— AMUSEMENT :— Don 't  look  bored ! 
Buy  1S6.  The  most  side-splitting,  mirth-provok- 
ing novelty  ever  devised.  Amuses  old  and  young. 
Affords    fun    and    laughter    from    morning    till 

night. 

34—10.7 ;  23—10.6 

30.  2X4,— HOSPITALITY:— Don't  be  content 
with  envying  the  successful  hostess  when  you  can 
secure  the  same  keen  pleasure  for  yourself.  The 
homes  equipped  with  2X4  are  known  far  and 
wide  for  their  generous  comfort  and  open  hospi- 
tality. 

24—8.0;  34—11.0 

31.  2Y9,— YOUTH :— The  fountain  of  eternal 
youth  has  never  been  discovered,  but  it  has  been 
demonstrated  beyond  a  doubt  that  2Y9  restores 
youthful  vigor,  quickens  the  step  and  gives  new 
life  to  both  body  and  mind. 

24—8.9;  34—13.1 
269 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

32.  2V7— HUNTING :— Just  the  thing  for  the 
fishing  and  hunting  trip.  Ensures  a  lively  spirit 
in  the  field  and  solid  comfort  in  the  camp.  No 
vacation  outfit  is  complete  without  2V7. 

31—12.1;  28—11.6 

33.  109,— SOCIAL  STANDING :— The  use  of  109 
is  the  stamp  of  the  gentleman.  It  is  always 
found  where  social  standards  are  high,  and  is  the 
favorite  of  men  and  women  of  discriminating 
taste  and  culture. 

38—9.0;  24—12.6 

34.  2S8— ENORMOUS :— We  have  the  largest  es- 
tablishment engaged  in  the  production  of  2S8  in 
the  United  States. 

Capital,  $12,000,000.00. 
Factories   or   branch   establishments   in   every 
prominent  city  in  the  country. 

25—14.6 ;  38—11.4 

35.  1Y2,— CHE AP :— Buy  1Y2.  Costs  just  one- 
half  the  price  of  its  competitors.  Why  spend 
two  days'  wages  when  one  day's  work  will  bring 
our  high-class  article  to  your  home? 

32—10.1;  33—9.6 
270 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

36.  2J9— GET  THE  GENUINE  :— Avoid  substi- 
tutes. Many  may  pattern  after  us,  but  none  can 
equal  us.  As  a  matter  of  fact  2J9  has  many  imi- 
tators, but  there  is  only  one  standard,  genuine 
article.    Ask  for  2J9. 

21—12.0 ;  48—9.4 

37.  2P6—  PROGRESS:— Don't  be  a  dead  one. 
Use  2P6  and  be  up  to  date.  It  is  an  essential 
part  of  every  progressive  modern  establishment. 

40— 11.7;  29— 12.3 

38.  2A3, — SALE  : — We  are  closing  out  our  large 
stock  of  2A3  at  a  great  sacrifice,  to  make  way  for 
next  year's  goods.  For  the  next  ten  days  2 A3 
will  be  sold  at  less  than  cost.  Come  early.  Don't 
miss  this  rare  opportunity. 

41— 11.3;  31— 11.7 

39.  2M5  —  EXCEL:— Don't  be  a  wall  flower.  Use 
2M5  and  you  will  be  the  envy  of  all  your  friends. 
It  gives  that  look  of  superiority  which  everyone 
recognizes  and   respects,  but  which  few  possess. 

36—11.7;  42—13.0 

40.  2K4—  CIVIC  PRIDE:— We  appeal  to  your 
civic  pride.     2K4  is  made  in  your  own  city,  by 

271 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

local  workmen  and  backed  by  strictly  home  cap- 
ital.    Encourage  home  industry.     Use  2K4. 

33—15.0;  45—10.3 

41.  1H9,— PATRIOTISM :— Our  1H9  product  is 
made  for  American  consumers,  of  strictly  Amer- 
ican-grown materials,  by  an  American  firm  em- 
ploying exclusively  American  labor  and  Amer- 
ican capital. 

35—15.6;  43—10.3 

42.  2G4— UNION  MADE  :— We  stand  for  organ- 
ized labor.  2G4  is  a  strictly  union-made  product, 
built  by  union  labor,  of  union-raised  material, 
and  sold  exclusively  by  all  union  dealers. 

49—14.6 ;  32—11.6 

43.  1M8— RECOMMENDATION:— Here's  what 
the  world-famous  tenor  of  the  Metropolitan 
Opera  House  says  of  1M8 : 

"I   have   used   your    product    constantly    and 
have  continued  to  derive  great  benefit  from  it. ' 

(Signed)     Enrico  Caruso. 
46—14.0;  37—14.5 

44.  1D8,— NOBBY :— Our  1D8  products  are  made 
by  our  smartest  designers,   especially   for   those 

272 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

who  love  nobby  and  dressy  styles.  Exclusive 
patterns  and  dashing  cuts,  unequaled  in  snap 
and  color. 

48—7.3;  35—10.3 

45.  1B5,— STYLE  :— Our  new  1B5  is  fresh  from 
the  center  of  fashion,  representing  the  latest  cre- 
ation of  accepted  artists  of  style,  in  exclusive  de- 
signs and  dressy  patterns,  chic  and  strictly  a  la 

mode. 

47—5.8;  40—7.5 

46.  1L7,— ROYALTY :— 1L7  will  be  found  in  most 
of  the  houses  of  European  royalty.  We  are  com- 
missioned by  official  warrant  to  supply  1L7  to 
his  Excellency,  the  Emperor  of  Germany. 

50—8.5;  39—12.1 

47.  2N7  —  ADMIRATION :— Do  you  desire  the  ad- 
miration of  those  you  meet?  Use  2N7  and  you 
will  be  the  constant  center  of  attraction  to  ador- 
ing and  envious  eyes.  No  jewels  or  marvels  of 
costuming  can  add  so  much  to  your  appearance 

as  2N7. 

43—9.4;  47—11.5 

273 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

48.  2H8—  IMPORTED:— All  2H8  products  are 
strictly  imported  and  foreign  stamped.  2H8 
comes  straight  from  European  makers,  and  its 
superior  quality  is  thereby  guaranteed. 

45—10.0;  46—9.8 

49.  1U4, — BEAUTY: — Are  you  as  pretty  as  you 
might  be?  No  one  wants  to  be  homely.  The 
continued  use  of  1U4  removes  the  undesirable 
blemish,  beautifies  the  complexion,  renders  the 
form  attractive  and  gives  charm  to  the  figure. 

42—8.9;   50—9.8 

50.  2U3— PERSONALITY:— Everyone  desires  to 
be  attractive  to  the  opposite  sex.  2U3  will  give 
you  distinctive  presence  and  engaging  personal- 
ity which  is  irresistible  in  its  appeal. 

44—10.9 ;  49—19.2 

Certain  sources  of  " error' '  in  such  an  experi- 
ment are  at  once  obvious : 

1.  It  is  difficult  to  keep  out  of  even  the  abstract 
appeals  some  suggestion  of  special  reference. 
Thus  the  appeal  to  appetite  will  inevitably  sug- 
gest food,  some  health  appeals  are  strikingly 
medicinal  in  tone,  and  doubtless  in  most  cases 
there  is  a  more  or  less  pronounced  tendency  to 
think  of  one  article  rather  than  another. 

274 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

2.  There  is  a  certain  feeling  of  self-conscious- 
ness and  reserve  in  submitting  honestly  to  such 
an  experiment,  a  tendency  to  place  low  certain 
appeals  which  really  bulk  large  outside  of  the 
laboratory,  or  a  tendency  toward  ideal  arrange- 
ment strongly  suggestive  of  the  inclination  to  give 
learned  responses  in  association  tests. 

Of  these  two  sources  of  error,  it  may  be  said 
that  from  the  practical  point  of  view  only  the 
second  is  of  importance.  And  that  the  danger 
here  is  minimal  is  attested  by  the  fact  that  the 
results  of  such  tests  are  verified  by  keyed  results. 
The  observers  used  were  30  women,  mostly  Jun- 
iors in  Barnard  College,  taking  their  second 
year's  work  in  psychology,  and  20  men  in  Colum- 
bia College  of  corresponding  age  and  class. 
Twenty  of  the  women  made  two  arrangements, 
one  month  apart,  without  meanwhile  having  seen 
the  cards.  The  other  10  women  and  the  20  men 
made  but  one  arrangement.  No  time  limit  was 
given.  Each  observer  was  allowed  to  work  over 
the  material  until  a  satisfactory  order  had  been 
secured. 

Comparison  of  the  two  trials  of  the  group  of 
20  women  will  thus  throw  light  on  the  permanence 
of  such  judgments  and  on  the  constancy  of  differ- 
ent individuals.     Comparison  of  this  group  with 

275 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

the  group  of  10  women  will  show  how  far  the 
average  judgments  of  such  an  experiment  are 
typical  of  the  results  to  be  expected  from  observ- 
ers of  approximately  the  same  class.  Compari- 
son of  the  group  of  men  with  the  group  of  the 
women  will  reveal  such  sex  differences  in  these 
traits  as  may  be  present.  Separate  study  of  each 
group  will  show  the  degree  of  variability  intro- 
duced by  the  personal  equations  of  the  various  ob- 
servers, the  general  relationships  of  individual 
judgments  to  group  averages,  etc.  The  array  of 
figures  yielded  by  such  an  experiment  is  a  verita- 
ble mine  of  suggestions  and  material.  These  re- 
sults from  the  point  of  view  of  the  applied 
psychologist  merit  discussion  in  detail.  For  the 
present,  however,  we  must  limit  ourselves  to  giv- 
ing the  various  tables  of  measures  and  briefly 
summarizing  their  meaning  and  significance  for 
advertising  and  selling. 

The  table  gives  a  statement  of  the  relative  per- 
suasiveness of  the  different  appeals  for  men  and 
women,  their  average  values  and  positions.  In 
this  table  the  various  cards  which  might  be 
classed  under  one  general  heading,  such  as 
health,  reputation,  economy,  etc.,  have  been 
grouped  and  their  average  taken  as  representing 
the  most  probable  value  of  that  general  type  of 

276 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

appeal.    The  second  column  in  the  table  gives,  for 
each  general  type,  the  number  of  actual  cards 


TABLE   XVII 

Relative  Persuasiveness  for  Men  and  Women 


Appeal 


Health 

Cleanliness 

Scientific 

Time  Saved 

Appetizing 

Efficiency 

Safety 

Durability 

Quality 

Modernity 

Family  Affection . 

Reputation 

Guarantee 

Sympathy 

Medicinal 

Imitation 

Elegance 

Courtesy 

Economy 

Affirmation 

Sport 

Hospitality 

Substitutes 

Clan  Feeling 

Nobby 

Recommendation 
Social  Superiority 

Imported 

Beautifying 


No. 


3 
1 
2 
1 
1 
3 
4 
2 
2 
2 
4 

5 
2 
1 
3 
3 
2 
1 
5 
2 
2 
1 

1 
4 
2 
2 
4 
1 
3 


40  Final 


Av 


4.0 
4.0 
6.5 

8.5 
9.0 
9.5 


10, 
11. 
14 
14 


5 
5 
5 

5 


15.2 

21.1 
21.2 
23.0 
25.0 
25.5 
26.0 
26.0 
26.4 
29.0 
29.0 
29.0 

34.5 
41.0 
42.5 
43.0 
44.0 
45.5 
45.8 


Pos. 


1 
2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9^ 
9^ 
11 

12 

13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 

23 

24 
25 
26 

27 
28 
29 


20  Women 


Av. 


5.0 

5.0 

6.5 

3.0 

13.0 

5.3 

15.7 

8.5 

10.0 

16.5 

21.8 

18.4 
14.5 
37.0 
15.0 
30.0 
34.0 
27.0 
27.6 
30.0 
32.5 
24.0 

21.0 
40.5 
47.5 
48.0 
41.2 
45.0 
43.0 


Pos. 


2 

3 

5 

1 

8 

4 

11 

6 

7 

12 

15 

13 
9 
23 
10 
19 
22 
17 
18 
20 
21 
16 

14 

24 

28 
29 
25 
27 
26 


20  Men 


Av. 


3.0 

3.0 

7.0 

14.0 

5.0 

13.3 

5.2 

14.0 

19.0 

12.5 

8.7 

32.8 
28.0 
9.0 
35.0 
21.0 
17.5 
25.0 
35.2 
28.0 
25.5 
34.0 

48.0 
41.5 
37.5 

38.0 
47.0 
46.0 

48.7 


Pos. 


1 

2 
5 

10 
3 
9 
4 
11 
13 
8 
6 

15 
19 
7 
22 
14 
12 
16 
17 
20 
18 
21 

28 
25 
23 
24 
27 
26 
29 


277 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

averaged  to  give  the  result  in  the  table.  Since 
this  number  varies  from  1  to  5  the  reliability  of 
the  various  measures  is  not  uniform,  but  the 
method  reduces  to  a  certain  extent  the  influence  of 
the  particular  way  in  which  one  or  other  of  the 
various  appeals  may  have  been  expressed. 

Columns  3  and  4  give  the  final  averages  and 
positions  for  the  combined  groups  of  20  men  and 
20  women.  The  values  range  from  4.0  to  45.8, 
these  numbers  indicating  the  average  position  in 
the  list  of  50  possible  places.  The  group  of  ap- 
peals, as  a  whole,  falls  into  three  rather  sharply 
defined  sections,  the  series  breaking  at  values  15.2 
and  at  29.0,  at  which  points  there  are  wide  gaps, 
which  contrast  with  the  gradual  transitions  of 
value  within  the  groups.  And  these  sections, 
moreover,  correspond  to  qualitatively  different 
groups  of  appeals. 

(a)  In  the  first  group,  with  values  ranging 
from  4.0  to  15.2,  fall  the  appeals  to  health,  cleanli- 
ness, scientific  construction,  economy  of  time,  ap- 
petite, increase  of  efficiency,  safety,  durability, 
quality,  modernity,  and  family  affection.  The 
general  characteristic  of  these  appeals  is  that 
they  are  strictly  relevant  in  tone,  describe  the  ar- 
ticle precisely  or  point  out  some  specific  value, 
quality  or  "selling  point"  which  it  possesses. 

278 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

(b)  In  the  second  group,  with  values  ranging 
from  21.1  to  29.0,  fall  the  appeals  based  on  the 
general  reputation,  guarantee  or  assertion  of  the 
manufacturer,  and  on  the  set  of  specific  and  more 
or  less  social  feelings  and  interests,  such  as  sym- 
pathy for  others  (not  family),  courtesy,  imitation, 
elegance,  hospitality,  sport,  cheapness,  etc.  The 
characteristic  of  these  appeals  is  that  they  do  not 
relevantly  describe  the  article,  but  try  to  connect 
the  article  with  some  specific  instinct  or  effective 
conception.  And  these  appeals  are  distinctly  less 
personal,  more  social,  than  those  of  the  first 
group. 

(c)  In  the  third  section,  with  values  ranging 
(with  one  exception)  from  41.0  to  45.8,  fall  the 
rather  vague  appeals  to  avoid  substitutes,  to  civic 
pride  and  clan  feeling,  social  superiority,  recom- 
mendation, the  ideals  of  fashion  and  foreign  ori- 
gin, and  finally  the  beautifying  appeal.  The  chief 
characteristic  of  this  group  seems  to  be  that 
while,  as  in  the  second  group,  the  statement  is 
semi-irrelevant  or  incidental,  the  feeling  appealed 
to  is  indeterminate  and  general. 

The  only  considerable  sex  differences,  cases  in 
which  the  difference  in  position  is,  say,  5  places  or 
over,  are  on  the  appeals  entitled  appetite,  safety, 
nobby,  family  affection,  sympathy,  elegance  and 

279 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

recommendation  which  are  placed  higher  by  the 
men  and  on  time  saved,  guarantee,  medicinal,  sub- 
stitutes, efficiency,  durability,  quality  and  hospi- 
tality, which  are  placed  higher  by  the  women. 

In  an  interesting  continuation  of  this  experi- 
ment five  professional  advertising  men  arranged 
the  series  of  appeals  in  an  order,  not  as  they  ap- 
pealed to  them,  personally,  but  as  they  judged 
they  ivould  appeal  to  the  general  reader  and  con- 
sumer. This  was  done  in  order  to  see  how  ac- 
curately the  expert  advertising  man  could  judge 
the  feelings  of  his  audience.  The  final  average 
order,  as  arranged  by  these  five  experts,  was  then 
compared  with  the  orders  as  arranged  by  the  20 
men  and  the  20  women.  Several  interesting 
points  resulted  from  this  comparison. 

In  the  first  place,  the  consumers  find  greater 
differences  between  the  various  appeals  than  do 
the  business  men.  The  total  range  of  values, 
from  best  to  poorest,  for  the  consumers,  was  from 
4  to  45.5.  For  the  advertising  men  the  total  range 
was  only  11.8  to  40.3.  This  means  that  the  ad- 
vertising men  did  not  fully  realize  the  differences 
which  were  felt  by  the  readers.  To  the  adver- 
tising men  the  50  appeals  tend  to  be  pretty  much 
alike,  or  rather,  these  men  believed  that  the  con- 
sumers would  feel  the  appeals  to  be  pretty  much 

280 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

alike,  in  persuasiveness.  They  failed  to  appre- 
ciate the  real  effects  of  rather  small  changes  in 
their  copy. 

By  proper  statistical  methods  a  figure  can  be 
obtained  which  will  show  the  degree  of  corre- 
spondence between  the  arrangements  by  the  vari- 
ous groups  of  people.  When  this  is  done,  a  co- 
efficient of  100  per  cent,  means  exact  correspond- 
ence. One  of  — 100  per  cent,  means  just  the  re- 
verse order  in  one  case  of  that  in  the  other.  A  co- 
efficient of  0  per  cent,  means  only  a  chance  or  ac- 
cidental correspondence.  Intermediate  amounts 
indicate  corresponding  degrees  of  resemblance 
between  the  two  arrangements.  The  coefficients 
for  these  experiments  are  as  follows : 

1.  The  20  men  and  the  20  women  agree 
closely  with  each  other,  giving  a  coefficient 
of  correspondence  of  63  per  cent. 

2.  Two  different  arrangements,  by  the  20 
women,  show  a  very  high  degree  of  corre- 
spondence (90  per  cent.). 

3.  The  average  order,  as  arranged  by  the  ad- 
vertising men,  corresponded  only  slightly 
with  the  average  order  for  the  men  and 
women  combined.  The  coefficient  is  only 
36  per  cent,  of  resemblance. 

281 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

4.  When  the  advertising  men  arranged  the 
appeals  as  they  thought  they  would  appeal 
to  other  men,  the  degree  of  correspond- 
ence was  fairly  high,  the  coefficient  being 
65  per  cent. 

5.  When  the  advertising  men  arranged  the 
appeals  as  they  thought  they  would  appeal 
to  women,  the  correspondence  was  much 
less,  the  coefficient  being  only  41  per  cent. 

That  is  to  say,  these  experts  had  very  incor- 
rect ideas  as  to  the  relative  strength  of  these  ap- 
peals for  men  and  women  in  general  (36  per 
cent.).  In  the  case  of  men  alone,  their  opinions 
were  fairly  correct  (65  per  cent.),  while  in  the 
case  of  women  the  opinion  of  the  experts  was 
much  less  reliable  (41  per  cent.). 

Taking  the  table  as  it  stands,  the  various  in- 
stincts and  interests  there  represented  stand  in 
their  order  of  strength  in  so  far  as  they  may 
serve  as  the  basis  of  appeal  in  business  transac- 
tions, regardless  of  the  commodity  concerned. 
But  it  is  obvious  that  not  all  of  these  appeals  can 
be  used  in  the  case  of  any  single  commodity. 
Thus  "Appetizing  Qualities"  cannot  apply  to  the 
sale  of  diamonds  or  shoes,  nor  could  "Durabil- 
ity"  be   applied   to   the  merchandising   of   food 

282 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

products.  The  table,  nevertheless,  affords  an  ap- 
proximate statement  of  the  relative  strength  of 
available  appeals  for  any  given  commodity.  It  is 
only  necessary  to  begin  at  the  top  of  the  list  and 
select  the  first  appeal  which  could  be  applied  in 
the  description  of  the  commodity  in  question. 
This  will  then  constitute  the  strongest  appeal 
which  can  be  made  in  the  interest  of  that  com- 
modity. The  next  in  the  list  which  would  apply 
appropriately  would  be  the  next  strongest,  etc. 
For  example,  the  first  appeal  which  would  be  ap- 
propriate to  breakfast  foods  would  be  "Health- 
fulness.  ' '  Then  would  come,  in  order  of  strength, 
as  indicated  by  position  in  the  table — "Cleanli- 
ness," "Appetizing  Qualities,"  "Reputation  of 
the  Firm, 9 '  "  Medicinal  Properties, "  "  Economy, ' ' 
"Hospitality,"  "Substitutes,"  "Clan  Loyalty," 
"Recommendation  by  others,"  and  finally  "Im- 
ported. ' '  If  the  reader  will  now  turn  back  to  the 
table  in  the  preceding  chapter,  in  which  are  given 
the  results  of  a  special  study  of  the  persuasive- 
ness of  advertisements  used  for  breakfast  foods, 
he  will  find  that  the  order  of  strength  of  appeals 
as  indicated  by  this  abstract  table  coincides  with 
the  order  determined  upon  independently  by 
Strong. 

283 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL    AND    RESPONSE 

SUMMARY 

We  may  then  summarize  the  practical  results 
of  this  experiment  under  the  following  headings : 

1.  The  table  of  relative  persuasiveness  affords 
a  statement  of  the  order  of  strengh,  in  general, 
of  most  of  the  appeals  which  can  be  utilized  in  the 
process  of  advertising  and  selling,  regardless  of 
the  commodity  concerned. 

2.  Selection  from  this  table  of  the  appeals  ap- 
propriate to  the  description  of  any  given  com- 
modity enables  the  formation  of  a  smaller  table 
in  which  the  appropriate  appeals  stand  in  their 
order  of  relative  persuasiveness. 

3.  Any  sex  differences,  and  the  amount  of  these 
differences,  may  be  determined  by  the  compari- 
son of  the  orders  for  men  and  women  as  given  in 
the  table. 

4.  The  strongest  appeals  which  can  be  made  for 
any  commodity,  in  the  attempt  to  market  it,  dis- 
tribute it,  or  secure  publicity  for  it,  will  consist 
in  strictly  relevant  statements  of  the  characteris- 
tics, specific  qualities  or  merits,  or  "selling 
points ' '  possessed  by  the  article.  This  will  be  es- 
pecially true  if  these  qualities  take  the  form  of 
cleanliness,  healthfulness,  scientific  construction, 
economy  of  time,  increase   of  efficiency,   safety, 

284 


STRENGTH  OF  INSTINCTS  AND  INTERESTS 

durability,  modernity,  appetizing  quality,  and  the 
power  to  contribute  to  the  welfare  of  one's  fam- 
ily and  dependants. 

5.  If  a  commodity  possesses  none  of  these  qual- 
ities it  is  possible  to  resort  to  the  use  of  a  second 
but  weaker  type  of  appeal,  by  trying  to  associate 
the  article  with  some  specific  instinct  or  effective 
habit  of  a  more  "social/'  less  "personal"  char- 
acter than  those  of  the  first  group,  such  appeals 
as  those  based  on  reputation  of  the  firm,  guaran- 
tee or  assertion  of  the  maker,  sympathy  for  others 
(not  in  one's  family),  courtesy,  imitation,  ele- 
gance, hospitality,  sport,  cheapness,  etc.  These 
appeals  are  not  descriptive  of  the  article  itself 
but  attempt  to  utilize,  in  an  incidental  way,  the 
strength  of  instincts  and  interests  which  are  pri- 
marily concerned  with  situations  outside  the  field 
of  business  transactions. 

6.  The  semi-relevant  or  strictly  incidental  ap- 
peal, appealing  to  rather  indeterminate  and  gen- 
eral interests,  such  as  those  based  on  civic 
pride  and  clan  feeling,  social  superiority  im- 
pulses, recommendation  by  others,  ideals  of  fash- 
ion and  of  foreign  origin,  the  promise  of  physical 
beauty,  and  the  avoidance  of  substitutes,  are  the 
weakest  appeals  that  could  possibly  be  used.  One 

285 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

is  amazed  at  the  extent  to  which  these  feeble  ap- 
peals are  relied  on  in  current  advertising  and 
selling,  and  is  not  surprised  at  the  assertions  of 
experts  that  two-thirds  of  the  money  devoted  to 
securing  publicity  is  wasted. 


CHAPTER  XV 

SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES    OF    INTEREST    TO 

BUSINESS    MEN 

I.       SEX    DIFFEKENCES 

It  is  not  my  purpose  here  to  enter  upon  any 
discussion  of  sex  or  class  differences  in  general, 
but  rather  to  confine  myself  to  such  differences  as 
have  been  experimentally  shown  to  be  present  in 
the  processes  of  purchasing  goods,  and  particu- 
larly in  the  processes  of  reacting  to  the  appeals  of 
advertisements  and  of  salesmen.  Biologists  have 
had  much  to  say  concerning  elemental  differences 
between  the  male  and  female  reproductive  cells, 
and  have  often  reasoned,  by  way  of  analogy,  and 
with  insufficient  caution,  to  similar  or  correspond- 
ing differences  between  men  and  women  in  mature 
life.  The  naturalists,  in  turn,  have  found  charac- 
teristic differences  in  the  organization  and  activi- 
ties of  the  sexes  among  lower  animals,  and  these 
differences  have  also  been  eagerly  sought  for  in 
human  society.  The  anthropologist  has,  in  his 
own  way,  compared  the  activities  and  character- 

287 


PRINCIPLES   OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

istics  of  sex  as  these  are  reflected  in  primitive  cul- 
tures, and  many  have  attempted  to  trace  continui- 
ties between  these  conditions  and  those  of  our 
own  complex  social  organizations,  institutions  and 
activities.  Finally,  the  experimental  psycholo- 
gist has  investigated  in  great  detail,  but  seldom 
with  adequate  accuracy  or  scope,  the  mental  char- 
acteristics of  men  and  women,  as  shown  by  their 
sensory  acuity,  their  motor  capacities,  their  im- 
agery, memory,  attention,  associations,  reasoning, 
feelings  and  emotions,  suggestibility,  interests, 
general  information,  activity,  inclination,  etc. 
Readers  interested  in  the  outcome  of  these  stud- 
ies may  find  them  fully  discussed  in  the  books 
enumerated  in  the  appendix. 

In  the  present  connection  we  shall  ask  but  two 
questions,  and  shall  seek  to  answer  them  in  so 
far  as  this  is  possible  in  terms  of  our  present 
knowledge.  These  questions  are :  Are  there 
any  characteristic  differences  between  men  and 
women,  as  we  find  them  to-day,  with  respect  to 
the  ways  in  which  they  behave  as  purchasers  of 
goods,  or  as  readers  of  advertisements,  or  as  au- 
ditors of  selling  talks!  If  so,  the  second  ques- 
tion will  then  be:  What  are  these  differences, 
and  can  they  be  in  any  way  specified,  demon- 
strated and  measured? 

288 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

We  may  begin  by  inquiring  whether  or  not 
there  are  characteristic  differences  between  the 
things  which  men  buy  and  those  things  of  which' 
women  are  purchasers?  Clearly  this  is  a  ques- 
tion on  which  the  practical  business  man  should 
be  able  to  speak  with  authority.  But  if  he  has 
ever  formulated  an  answer  to  the  question,  he  has 
either  kept  the  data  to  himself  or  published  them 
in  inaccessible  places.  At  least  I  have  failed  to 
find  any  account,  in  business  literature,  of  what 
men  and  women  buy.  We  must  rely,  then,  for 
our  information,  on  a  preliminary  study  which  I 
have  made  on  a  group  of  25  New  York  City  fam- 
ilies, and  must,  of  course,  bear  in  mind  that  these 
results  apply  only  to  families  of  a  similar  type, 
living  under  similar  conditions.  How  far  a 
change  in  conditions  effects  a  change  in  the  role 
of  men  and  women  as  purchasers  only  further  in- 
vestigation can  reveal.  But  the  present  results 
are  suggestive. 

In  this  investigation  members  of  the  family 
were  requested  to  report,  with  respect  to  80  com- 
monly used  articles,  whether  each  article  was  pur- 
chased (a)  by  the  men  of  the  household  alone,  or 
(b)  solely  by  the  women,  or  (c)  by  either  or  by 
both  in  consultation.  Some  information  concern- 
ing the  character  of  the  homes  included  may  be  af- 

289 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 

forded  by  the  facts  that  72  per  cent,  of  the  fam- 
ilies live  in  apartments,  60  per  cent,  of  them  pos- 
sess neither  vehicles  of  conveyance,  pets,  nor  mu- 
sical  instruments.      The    annual   income   ranged 

TABLE    XVTtt 

Men  and  Women  as  Purchasers 


Class  of 
Article 

No.  of 
Specifi- 
cations 

Percen- 
tage by 
Men 
Alone 

Percen- 
tage by 
WTomen 
Alone 

Percen- 
tage by 
Both 

Percen- 
tage by 
Neither 

Men's  clothing. 
Women's  cloth- 
ing;   

11 

11 

6 
6 
3 
4 
3 

8 

5 

6 

5 

12 

65 
1 

10 
2 

19 
0 

23 

4 

13 

0 
3 
6 

11 

87 

48 
89 

5 
96 

1 

48 

7 

87 
79 
22 

23 
12 

41 
8 

15 
4 

15 

46 
20 

13 

14 

68 

1 
0 

Druggist's  arti- 
cles  

1 

Kitchen  ware. . . 
Pets 

1 
61 

Dry  Goods .... 

Vehicles 

House    furnish- 
ings   

Musical   instru- 
ments   

Raw   and   mar- 
ket foods .... 

Package  foods. . 

Miscellaneous . . 

0 
61 

2 

60 

0 
4 
4 

Totals... 

80 

146 

580 

279 

195 

from  $2,000  to  $5,000,  with  perhaps  a  few  run- 
ning higher  than  this.     The  commodities  may  be 
classified  under  12  chief  headings,  with  a  number 
of  specifications  arranged  under  each.     The  fol- 
lowing table  gives  these  general  headings,  with 

290 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

the  number  of  specifications  under  each,  and  the 
per  cent,  of  the  families  which  reported  under  the 
respective  columns. 

From  the  examination  of  the  specific  articles, 
the  following  interesting  facts  emerge : 

1.  The  only  article  of  clothing  bought  by  men 
exclusively  is  their  own  collars.  Only  80  per  cent, 
buy  their  own  shoes  and  hats.  In  over  50  per 
cent,  of  the  cases  the  men's  jewelry,  handker- 
chiefs, socks,  and  underwear  are  purchased  either 
by  the  women  alone  or  in  consultation  with  them. 
In  one-third  of  the  cases  the  women  help  buy  the 
men's  shirts.  Only  one-third  of  the  men  buy  their 
own  handkerchiefs. 

2.  On  the  other  hand,  the  men  participate  but 
little  in  the  purchase  of  the  women's  apparel. 
Women  buy  men's  things  exclusively  11  times  as 
often  as  the  men  buy  women's  things  exclusively. 
Women  cooperate  with  men  twice  as  much  as 
men  cooperate  with  women,  in  the  purchase  of 
their  respective  apparel. 

3.  In  100  per  cent,  of  the  cases  women  are  sole 
purchasers  of  their  own  underwear,  lace,  thread, 
and  cooking  utensils.  In  80  per  cent,  of  the  cases 
they  are  the  sole  purchasers  of  dresses,  cloaks, 
footwear,  hats,  parasols,  gloves,  fans,  handker- 
chiefs, clotheslines,  chafing  dishes,  kitchen  tables, 

291 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

ribbons,  cloth,  flour,  vegetab3<  'ggs,  butter, 
bread,  cereals,  water  and  a  m<  I  goods.  In  over 
50  per  cent,  of  the  cases  -i  y  -  t]  ^  sole  pur- 
chasers of  curtains,  mattreo  -s,  meats,  ranges, 
talcums  and  perfumes.  Women  buy  83  per  cent, 
of  the  food,  but  less  than  50  per  cent,  of  the  house 
furnishings,  exclusively. 

4.  "Women  buy  more  of  the  magazines,  men 
more  of  the  newspapers.  Women  buy  many  wed- 
ding presents  exclusively,  but  men  participate 
more  largely  in7  the  purchase  of  Christmas  gifts, 
birthday  gifts,  and  children's  toys.  Only  5  per 
cent,  of  the  pets  are  bought  by  women  alone,  20 
per  cent,  by  men  alone. 

There  are,  then,  considerable  differences  be- 
tween the  parts  played  by  men  and  women  as  pur- 
chasers of  goods.  If  there  are  now  any  differ- 
ences in  manner  of  reacting  to  the  appeals  of  ad- 
vertisements and  salesmen,  these  differences  will 
be  worth  knowing,  and  such  knowledge  might  be 
effectively  utilized  in  the  direction  and  formation 
of  appeals,  according  as  they  are  designed  to 
reach  either  or  both  classes.  In  the  course  of  the 
preceding  chapters  there  has  frequently  been  oc- 
casion to  refer  to  sex  differences  in  one  respect  or 
another.  These  differences,  along  with  others 
which  have  been  brought  out  in  experiments  simi- 

292 


\ 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

lar  to  those  reported  here,  may  now  be  brought 
together  and  confirmed. 

1.  In  so  far  as  we  may  rely  on  experiments 
which  tend  to  show  on  the  part  of  women  a 
greater  sensitivity  to  sensory  impressions,  and  a 
more  desultory  and  more  permanent  memory  ca- 
pacity, it  is  apparent  that  the  mechanical  in- 
centives (intensity,  magnitude,  contrast,  motion, 
isolation  and  position)  will  be  less  effective  and 
more  unnecessary  when  appealing  to  women  than 
when  appealing  to  men.  Further,  that  there  will 
be  less  need  for  devices  calculated  to  fix  impres- 
sions in  consciousness. 

2.  Gale  finds  that  women  are  more  attracted 
by  pictures  than  are  men,  and  his  curves  of  at- 
tention values  of  cuts  and  reading  matter  show 
genuine  differences  in  this  respect.  Strong  also 
finds  that  women  are  more  attracted  by  cuts  than 
are  men.  In  discussing  the  results  of  a  study  of 
50  advertisements  for  a  well-known  soap  he  re- 
marks :  ' '  Only  one  among  the  advertisements 
preferred  by  women  could  be  considered  as  ap- 
proximating a  '  copy-ad, '  and  there  the  main  in- 
terest, apparently  small,  I  should  judge,  would  lie 
in  the  three  small  cuts.,,     (p.  81.) 

3.  Much  the  same  thing  may  be  said  for  the  use 
of  color.    Darwin  believed  that  among  the  lower 

293 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

animals  the  female  is  strongly  affected  by  color, 
which  the  male  consequently  develops  by  the 
process  of  sexual  selection.  Thompson  found 
that  with  the  individuals  studied  by  her,  visual 
experience  was  more  important  in  the  conscious- 
ness of  the  women  than  in  that  of  the  men,  and 
that  only  the  women  showed  prominent  associa- 
tions connected  with  the  different  colors.  In  dis- 
cussing the  matter  of  color  preferences  we  have 
already  referred  to  Wissler's  finding  that  the  pre- 
ferred color  of  an  individual  tends  to  shift  toward 
the  violet  end  of  the  spectrum  as  he  grows  older, 
and  to  the  preference  of  met*  for  blues  and  of 
women  for  reds.  Of  course  these  preferences  are 
very  dependent  on  the  uses  to  which  colors  are  to 
be  put,  and  a  preferred  color  for  a  necktie  may 
not  be  agreeable  to  the  same  individual  for  the 
interior  decoration  of  a  room,  or  for  the  back- 
ground of  a  billboard. 

4.  Gale  reports  that  irrelevant  material, 
whether  in  the  reading  matter  or  illustration  of 
an  advertisement,  attracts  the  attention  and  con- 
sideration of  women  more  easily  than  is  the  case 
with  men.  The  table  in  which  his  data  are  given 
shows  this  to  have  been  the  case.  Strong  re- 
marks, of  his  experimental  results :  ' '  The  pref- 
erence for  the  irrelevant  among  women  confirms 

294 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

the  early  work  of  Gale  upon  attention  value.' ' 
(p.  80.) 

5.  With  respect  to  the  strength  of  special  ap- 
peals, certain  clear  and  interesting  differences 
havecbeen  found.  Thus  in  the  table  in  the  pre- 
ceding chapter,  giving  the  relative  strength  of  a 
large  number  of  appeals,  the  men  may  be  com- 
pared with  the  women.    The  results  of  still  other 

i 

investigations  make  possible  further  such  com- 
parisons. Chief  among  the  differences  found  here 
are  the  following : 

(a)  The  appeal  to  civic  pride,  patriotism  or 
other  form  of  clan  feeling  is  stronger  with  women 
than  with  men.  In  Table  XVII  the  civic  pride  ap- 
peal ranks  about  the  same  for  both  men  and 
women.  But  Strong  found  that  advertisements 
for  breakfast  foods,  based  on  the  slogan  "  Patron- 
ize home  industries, ' '  were  rated  "considerably 
higher  by  the  women  than  by  the  men  (11.1  as 
compared  with  14.6)  and  that  of  the  nine  who 
ranked  them  above  eighth  place  seven  were 
women."    (p.  45.) 

(b)  Appeals  to  authority  of  others  and  to  rec- 
ommendation by  others  are  uniformly  found  to 
be  rated  higher  by  men  than  by  women,  although 
fairly  low  for  both.  Thus  in  Table  XVII  the 
"recommendation"  appeals  average  position  38 

295 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

in  a  series  of  50,  for  men,  and  only  48th  place  in 
the  series,  for  women.  Similarly  Strong  finds 
that  "authority  advertisements  appeal  more  to 
men  than  to  women."     (p.  41.) 

(c)  Detailed  examination  of  the  relative  merit 
of  the  various  appeals  discloses  the  fact  that  the 
women  agree  with  each  other  more  closely  on 
personal  appeals  (those  based  on  such  con- 
ceptions as  "style,"  "nobby,"  "sanitary,"  "ap- 
petizing," "social  standing,"  "time  saved," 
"safety,"  "durability,"  etc.)  than  do  the  men. 
They  agree  with  each  other  about  25  per  cent, 
more  closely  than  do  the  men.  Furthermore,  they 
agree  in  placing  these  appeals  higher  than  do  the 
men. 

(d)  On  appeals  made  to  the  instincts  and  im- 
pulses underlying  social  solidarity,  such  as  the 
recommendation,  the  reputation  of  the  firm,  fam- 
ily affection,  guarantee,  union  made,  sympathy, 
growth  of  the  business,  etc.,  the  women  disagree 
more  than  do  the  men. 

(e)  Men  disagree  most  of  all  on  the  strength 
of  purely  personal  appeals,  such  as  those  indi- 
cated by  the  words:  health,  social  standing,  effi- 
ciency, time  saved,  ambition,  progress,  competi- 
tion, etc.  Women  disagree  most  of  all  among 
themselves    on    the    appeals    indicated   by    such 

296 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

words  as  popularity,  recommendation,  reputation, 
family  affection,  guarantee,  union  made,  sympa- 
thy, growth  of  the  firm,  etc. 

(f )  These  facts  lead  to  the  further  generaliza- 
tion that  the  men  are  homogeneous,  that  is,  tend  to 
resemble  each  other  more  closely,  on  their  prefer- 
ences, on  appeals  which  are  strong.  Women,  on 
the  contrary,  tend  to  be  alike  with  respect  to  their 
dislikes,  appeals  which  are  weak.  Whether  this 
difference  bears  in  the  direction  of  selection  and 
difference  in  sex  experience  and  training,  or 
merely  toward  the  temporary  motives  which 
operate  in-  reacting  toward  appeals  made  in  the 
interest  of  articles  of  commerce,  the  experiment 
does  not  show.  The  fact  that  women  have  definite 
and  mutual  aversions,  with  fewer  common  prefer- 
ences, while  men  have  fewer  determinate  dislikes, 
but  definite  and  mutual  preferences,  is  an  exceed- 
ingly interesting  discovery,  and  one  which,  if 
verified,  may  be  found  to  have  countless  applica- 
tions in  business  and  in  other  forms  of  daily  ac- 
tivity. Whether  the  difference  be  interpreted  to 
mean  a  fundamental  and  inherent  sex  difference, 
or  merely  a  difference  which  reflects  our  present 
social  organization  (which  is  doubtless  an  ade- 
quate explanation  of  all  the  facts)  has  nothing  to 
do  with  the  present  usefulness  of  the  fact  itself. 

297 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

It  should  be  further  pointed  out  that  these  com- 
parisons  do  not  rest  on  the  results  of  a  single  ex- 
periment. Thus  Strong  finds  that  "when  women 
are  given  an  equal  opportunity  with  men  to  rate 
appeals  (advertisements)  they  are  able  to  classify 
their  dislikes  as  well  as  their  preferences,  which 
men  do  not.  ...  A  careful  analysis  of  the 
data  shows  that  women  have  more  and  greater 
dislikes  than  men,  and  are  surer  of  them."  (p. 
79.)  Further  evidence  is  afforded  by  Kuper's  ex- 
periments, described  in  one  of  the  following  sec- 
tions of  this  chapter. 

6.  A  final  difference  which  is  quite  commonly 
held  to  exist  between  the  ways  in  which  men  and 
women  react  to  appeals  has  to  do  with  the  two 
forms  of  appeal  which  we  have  characterized  as 
"the  long  circuit"  and  "the  short  circuit," 
Women  are  popularly  supposed  to  react  more 
strongly  to  emotional  situations  than  do  men. 
Since  reaction  to  an  emotional  situation  is  what 
characterizes  the  "short  circuit"  process  of  ap- 
peal and  response,  this  would  be  equivalent  to 
saying  that  short  circuit  appeals,  such  as  we  have 
previously  described  and  illustrated,  may  be  di- 
rected to  women  more  effectively  than  to  men. 
Thus  Scott  says,  in  a  description  of  the  various 
ways   of   reaching   a    decision:     "The   woman's 

298 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

method  of  decision  "  has  characteristics  of  its  own. 
u  Insufficient  time  is  given  to  the  deliberation,  or 
difficulty  is  found  in  classifying  the  problem.  The 
deliberation  is  interrupted  by  a  sudden  extreme 
feeling  of  value  attaching  itself  to  one  or  the 
other  contemplated  alternative.  The  feelings 
rush  in  and  take  the  place  of  reason.  In  deciding 
by  the  woman's  method  we  are  scarcely  able  to 
see  how  we  reached  our  conclusion  and  we  often 
speak  of  such  decisions  as  being  intuitive.  .  .  . 
Women  are  supposed  to  decide  in  this  way  more 
often  than  men.  They  are  supposed  to  have  more 
perfectly  developed  instincts  or  intuitions.  Their 
sentiment  vanquishes  attempts  to  utilize  sophisti- 
cated reasoning  and  the  outcome  is  frequently 
wise  and  in  every  way  as  worthy  of  respect  as  are 
the  results  of  more  complete  forms  of  delibera- 
tion.''  (Scott,  "Influencing  Men  in  Business.") 
The  same  writer  then  quite  properly  points  out 
that ' '  this  method  is  not  at  all  confined  to  women, 
but  is  a  very  common  method  of  deciding  any 
question  in  which  feelings  and  emotions  are  prom- 
inent." Indeed,  the  present  writer  is  inclined  to 
go  still  further  and  to  question  the  popular  notion 
that  women  are  prone  to  react  more  strongly  to 
emotional  situations  than  are  men.  The  real  dif- 
ference, if  any  exists,  is  probably  due  rather  to  the 

299 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND   RESPONSE 

kind  of  reaction  which  is  made,  and  to  the  type 
of  situation  which  experientially  or  convention- 
ally has  come  to  have  emotional  value.  It  may, 
indeed,  be  said  that  all  of  us  reach  our  most  im- 
portant decisions  through  feelings  of  value, 
rather  than  by  manipulation  of  logical  premises. 

II.      AGE  AND  CLASS  DIFFEKENCES 

On  these  points  there  is  even  less  to  be  said 
than  on  the  preceding  topic.  This  is  not  because 
the  differences  are  smaller,  for  none  of  the  sex 
differences  found  are  enormous,  nor  are  they  true 
of  all  individuals — they  are  differences  between 
averages,  and  hold,  when  present  at  all,  only  of 
men  and  women  in  the  long  run.  But  the  chief 
reason  for  the  lack  of  material  on  age  and  class 
differences  in  reactions  to  appeals  lies  in  the  fact 
that  the  topic  has  seldom  been  investigated  by 
precise  and  quantitative  methods.  An  interesting 
study  of  the  interests  of  children  has  been  made 
by  Miss  Gertrude  M.  Kuper,  who  studied  the 
reactions  and  preferences  of  200  children  of  five 
nationalities,  there  being  in  the  group  10  boys  and 
10  girls  for  each  age  from  6.5  to  16.5  years.  The 
following  results  are  quoted  from  a  report  of  her 
investigation  (Jour,  of  Phil.,  July  4,  1912,  pp. 
376-379). 

300 


SEX   AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

1  i  The  formal  experiment  consisted  in  asking  an 
individual  child  to  arrange  nine  pictures  in  the 
order  in  which  he  liked  them  best.  The  nine  pic- 
tures were  chosen  to  represent  nine  specific  ap- 
peals: landscape,  children,  animals,  religion, 
pathos,  sentiment,  patriotism,  heroism  and  action. 
(They  were  Cosmos  prints  and  therefore  of  uni- 
form size  and  finish.)  In  all  there  were  three 
series  of  these  pictures  each  parallel  so  far  as 
possible  with  the  other  two  in  their  appeals. 

"The  results  were  tabulated  according  to  age 
differences,  broad  social  distinctions,  and  nation- 
ality, but  in. the  last  named  case  the  number  of 
subjects  was  so  limited  (10  boys  and  10  girls  to 
each  of 'the  following  nationalities:  Irish,  French, 
German,  and  Italian,  and  only  9  girls  and  8  beys 
to  the  Spanish)  that  the  results  are  not  held  as 
significant. 

"The  positive  data  showed  a  sex  difference  in 
the  order  of  preference  for  these  several  appeals. 
The  girls '  order  was: 

Eeligion 

Patriotism 

Children 

Pathos 

Animals 

301 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

Sentiment 
Landscape 
The  Heroic 
Action 

"The  last  two  were  decidedly  lowest  in  the 
scale  and  the  first  three  were  quite  clearly  high- 
est for  all  ages ;  but  the  picture  representing  these 
nine  curves  was  one  of  bewildering  intersections 
as  the  values  changed  from  year  to  year. 

"The  boys'  order  was: 

Religion 

Patriotism 

Action 

The  Heroic 

Pathos 

Animals 

Sentiment 

Landscape 

Children 

"The  boys'  chart  representing  the  curves  for 
these  appeals  showed  greater  agreement  from 
year  to  year.  Religion  and  patriotism,  the  heroic 
and  action,  and  landscape  and  children,  kept 
rather  parallel  courses  all  along  the  age  scale, 
and  no  very  decided  tendencies  appeared  with 

302 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

progressive  age  differences.  Girls  seemed  to  lose 
somewhat  in  interest  in  children  and  animals  and 
to  take  greater  interest  in  the  heroic  and  action 
pictures.  The  latter  change  is  explained  by  the 
fact  that  as  the  girls  increased  in  school  knowl- 
edge they  read  an  historical  background  into 
these  more  or  less  warlike  scenes. 

"Another  sex  difference  noted  was  the  number 
of  positive  dislikes  expressed  by  each  sex.  The 
girls  gave  161  dislikes  as  against  the  boys'  65. 
Boys  seemed  to  entertain  relative  indifference  to- 
ward the  appeals  at  the  bottom  of  the  list. 

"In  all  their  comments  the  girls  were  far  more 
personal  than  the  boys.  The  personal  pronoun 
and  references  to  their  individual  experiences 
were  the  usual  preface  to  their  statements.  With 
the  boys  it  was  quite  otherwise;  they  discussed 
the  picture  as  an  objective  thing    .    .     ." 

These  results  are  particularly  interesting  as  in- 
dicating the  early  age  at  which  appear  the  differ- 
ences already  discussed  in  the  case  of  adult  men 
and  women. 

With  respect  to  class  differences,  the  only  ex- 
perimental data  known  to  me  are  those  se- 
cured by  Strong,  who  studied  (1)  a  group  of  101 
educated  business  men,  students  and  teachers, 
(2)  a  grour  of  95  educated  women,  and   (3)   a 

303 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

miscellaneous  group  of  97  men  selected  at  ran- 
dom, and  including  business  men,  doctors,  black- 
smiths, storekeepers,  saloonkeepers,  policemen, 
bakers,  lawyers,  postmasters,  etc.  His  report 
gives  separate  results  for  the  groups  men  stu- 
dents, women  students,  farmers,  business  men, 
doctors,  and  miscellaneous  men. 

The  only  significant  class  difference  revealed  is 
to  be  found  when  educated  classes  are  compared 
with  uneducated  classes.  The  difference  then  dis- 
closed is  suggested  in  the  remark:  "It  may  be 
that  this  is  a  characteristic  of  such  a  group  of  un- 
educated persons — that  they  are  unable  to  differ- 
entiate complex  appeals.  That  is  to  say,  that  on 
the  whole  any  one  of  these  appeals  is  as  strong 
as  any  other  .  .  ."  Strong  further  shows  that 
in  experiments  intended  to  measure  the  relative 
strength  of  these  appeals,  whether  for  psycho- 
logical or  for  practical  purposes,  "A  group  of  50 
college  students  will  represent  very  closely  the 
judgment  of  groups  of  educated  men  and  women, 
of  young  business  men,  such  as  attend  evening 
school,  etc.  They  will  not  represent  at  all  the 
judgment  of  groups  from  small  towns  and  farming 
sections  such  as  regions  around  Garrison,  N.  Y., 
from  which  the  data  were  obtained.' '     (p.  62.) 


304 


SEX    AND    CLASS    DIFFERENCES 

By  way  of  conclusion  it  may  be  remarked  that, 
although  most  of  the  results  presented  in  this 
treatment  of  the  principles  of  appeal  and  re- 
sponse have  been  demonstrated  to  be  completely 
valid,  many  of  them  must  be  held  to  be  rather 
suggestive  than  proved.  They  should  be  sugges- 
tive in  the  first  place  of  the  kind  of  information 
that  may  be  secured  when  human  nature  is  sub- 
mitted to  experiment  for  the  purpose  of  securing 
more  knowledge  for  the  concrete  purposes  of 
practical  living.  They  should  be  further  sugges- 
tive of  at  least  some  of  the  methods  which  may 
be  profitably  adopted  in  such  experiments.  At 
most,  it  is  not  so  much  the  possession  of  psycho- 
logical data  which  will  prove  of  practical  service 
in  daily  life,  but  rather  the  acquisition  of  the 
psychological  attitude  of  inquiry,  observation  and 
interpretation.  In  the  opinion  of  the  writer  the 
actual  content  of  this  book  will  prove  of  less  ulti- 
mate service  than  the  method  which  it  advocates 
■ — that  method  being  in  the  long  run  the  method 
which  must  be  adopted  by  any  psychological  in- 
quiry which  aspires  to  be  fruitful,  the  method  of 
systematically  observing,  analysing  and  formu- 
lating the  way  in  which  the  mind  works,  rather 
than  what  is  in  the  mind  as  its  work  proceeds. 


305 


BOOKS  AND  ARTICLES  REFERRED  TO  IN  THE 
TEXT  OR  RECOMMENDED  FOR  FURTHER 

READING 

CHAPTER  I 

Advertising  Magazines.  Advertising  and  Selling, 
Judicious  Advertising,  Printer's  Ink,  etc.  Articles  on 
Replies,  Sales,  Keying  Copy,  etc. 

Hollingworth.  Judgments  of  Persuasiveness. 
(Psych.  Rev.,  1911.) 

Strong,  E.  K.,  Jr.  The  Relative  Merits  of  Advertis- 
ing.    (Arch.  Psychol.) 

Yerkes.    Article  in  Jour.  Ed.  Psychol.,  1911. 

CHAPTER   II 

James.    Principles  of  Psychology. 
Ladd  and  Woodworth.     Physiological  Psychology. 
Pillsbury.     Essentials  of  Psychology. 
Thorndike.    Elements  of  Psychology. 

CHAPTER   III 

Calkins  and  Holden.  Modern  Advertising.  (Apple- 
tons.) 

Deweese.    Practical  Publicity. 

French.     Science  and  Art  of  Advertising. 

Kennedy.  Intensive  Advertising.  Reason- Why  Ad- 
vertising. 

Lewis.     Financial  Advertising. 

Mataja.    Die  Reklame. 

Starch.    Principles  of  Advertising. 

306 


REFERENCES  FOR  FURTHER  READING 

CHAPTER  IV 

Arnold.    Attention  and  Interest. 
Pillsbury.    Attention. 
Ribot.    Diseases  of  Attention. 
Titchener.    Text  Book  of  Psychology. 

CHAPTER   V 

Huey.     Physiology  and  Psychology  of  Reading. 

Munsterberg.     Psychology  and  Industrial  Efficiency. 

Roethlein.    Article  in  Amer.  Jour.  Psychol.,  1912. 

Scott.  Psychology  of  Advertising.  Theory  of  Ad- 
vertising. 

Strong.  Research  Bulletins  of  New  York  Advertising 
Men's  League. 

CHAPTERS  VI  AND  VII 

Allen.    Physiological  ^Esthetics. 

Gale.  Psychology  of  Advertising.  (Minnesota  Stud- 
ies.) 

Hollingworth.  Judgments  of  the  Comic.  (Psych. 
Rev.,  1911.) 

Le  Conte.    Sight. 

Rice.  Visual  Acuity  with  Lights  of  Different  Colors. 
(Arch.  Psychol.) 

Strong.  Relative  Merits  of  Advertisements.  (Arch. 
Psychol.) 

CHAPTERS   VIII   AND   IX       ,       ,    ' 

Allen.    Physiological  ^Esthetics. 
Gordon.     ^Esthetics. 

Hollingworth.  Obliviscence  of  the  Disagreeable. 
(Jour.  Phil.,  1910.) 

307 


PRINCIPLES  OF  APPEAL  AND  RESPONSE 

Parsons.  Principles  of  Advertising  Arrangement. 
(Published  by  the  Prang  Co.  for  the  New  York  Adver- 
tising Men's  League.) 

Puffer.    Psychology  of  Beauty. 

CHAPTER    X 

Galton.     Inquiries  into  Human  Faculty. 
Gordon.    ^Esthetics. 

Parsons.     Principles  of  Advertising  Arrangement. 
Scott.     Psychology  of  Advertising.     Theory  of  Ad- 
vertising. 

Sherman.    Elements  of  Literature. 
Titchener.     Text  Book  of  Psychology. 

CHAPTER    XI 

Bean.     The  Curve  of  Forgetting.     (Arch.  Psychol.) 

Calkins.     Association.     (Psych.  Rev.  Mon.) 

Dewey.     How  We  Think. 

Ebbinghaus.     On  Memory. 

Ladd  and  Woodworth.    Physiological  Psychology. 

Miller.    Psychology  of  Thinking. 

Munsterberg.    On  the  Witness  Stand. 

Scott.    Theory  of  Advertising. 

Watt.    Economy  and  Training  of  Memory. 

CHAPTER    XII 

James.     Principles  of  Psychology. 
Munsterberg.     Psychotherapy.     Psychology  and  the 
Market  Place.     (McClure's.) 
Ross.     Social  Psychology. 
Scott.    Influencing  Men  in  Business. 
Sidis.    Suggestion. 
Tarde.     Imitation. 

308 


REFERENCES    FOR    FURTHER    READING 

CHAPTER   XIII 

McDougall.    Social  Psychology. 

Scott.  Psychology  of  Advertising.  Theory  of  Adver- 
tising. 

Strong.  Relative  Merits  of  Advertisements.  (Arch. 
Psychol. ) 

Thorndike.    Elements  of  Psychology. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

Hollingworth.  Judgments  of  Persuasiveness. 
(Psych.  Rev.,  1911.) 

Strong.  Relative  Merits  of  Advertisements.  (Arch. 
Psychol.) 

Wells.  On  the  Variability  of  Individual  Judgment. 
(In  Essays  in  Honor  of  William  James.) 


CHAPTER   XV 

Boas.    The  Mind  of  Primitive  Man. 

Ellis.    Man  and  Woman.> 

Hall.    Adolescence. 

Kuper.     Interests  of  Children.     (Jour.  Phil.,  1912.) 

Ross.    Social  Control. 

Strong.  Relative  Merits  of  Advertisements.  (Arch. 
Psychol.) 

Thompson.    Mental  Traits  of  Sex. 

Thorndike.    Educational  Psychology. 

"Woodworth.  Race  Differences  in  Mental  Traits 
(Science,  1910.) 

309 


PRINCIPLES    OF    APPEAL   AND    RESPONSE 


Abbreviations  Used  in  Bibliography 

Am.  Jour.  Psychol. — American  Journal  of  Psychology.  (Worces- 
ter,  Mass.) 

Arch.  Psychol. — Archives  of  Psychology.     (Columbia  University, 
E.  S.  Woodworth,  Editor.) 

Jour.   Ed.  Psychol. — Journal  of  Educational  Psychology. 
'  Jour.   Phil. — Journal   of   Philosophy,   Psychology   and  Scientific 
Methods.      (Columbia  University.) 

Psych.  Rev. — Psychological  Keview.     (Baltimore,  Md.) 


INDEX 


Abbreviations,  310 

Activity,  114 

Adaptation,  48,  120 

Age  differences,  300 

Appeal,  measurements  of, 
253;  nervous  basis  of,  18; 
varieties  of,   261 

Association,  feeling-  tone  and, 
172;  laws  of,  191;  mean- 
ing and  basis  of,  190 

Atmosphere,  176 

Attention,  causes  of,  51;  defi- 
nition of,  46;  fluctuation 
of,  133;  holding  the,  132; 
laws  of,  56,  133;  results  of, 
52;  suggestion  and,  232 

Attention  value  of:  activity, 
114 ;  arrangement,  152 ; 
black  and  white,  77;  color, 
96;  the  comic,  119;  com- 
plexity, 135;  feeling  tone, 
138;  forms,  149;  instinct 
and  habit,  125;  intensity, 
61 ;  irrelevant  material, 
110;  isolation,  78;  lines, 
142;  magnitude,  64;  media, 
37;  motion,  74;  novelty, 
92;  pages,  83;  pictures, 
106;  pointers  and  borders, 
137;  position,  80;  trade 
marks,  213;  type,  72; 
unity,  136;  white  space,  77 


Backgrounds,  77,  187 
Balance,  153,  164 
Breakfast  foods,  249 

Children,  interests  of,  300 

Chromatic  aberration,  104 

Circulars,  41 

Class  differences,  303 

Classified  advertisements,  32 

Color,  attention  value  of,  96; 
balance  of,  194;  combina- 
tions of,  162;  feeling  tone 
of,  158;  influence  of,  97; 
preferences  in,  98;  third 
dimension  and,  103;  uses 
of,  102 

Comic  appeals,  adaptation  to, 
120;  attention  value  of, 
119;  defects  of,  120;  ex- 
periments on,  125;  varie- 
ties of,  121 

Complexity,  135 

Congruity,  198 

Content,  feeling  tone  of,  158 

Contiguity,  197 

Contrast,  76 

Correlation  of  judgments,  281 

Correspondence,  45 

Curves,  147 

Cuts,  attention  value  of,  106; 
relevant  and  irrelevant, 
110 


311 


INDEX 


class, 


Design,  152 

Devices    for    aiding   memory 

205 
Diagonal  lines,  147 
Differences,    age,    300 ; 

303;  sex,  287 
Diminishing  returns,  67 
Directories,  44 
Disagreeable,    obliviscence 

the,  140 
Disagreeable  words,  171 
Display  advertisements,  35 
Distance  of  colors,  103 
Distribution  of  appeals,  203 


of 


Effective  conceptions,  242 

Electric  light  advertisements, 
14 

Equipment  of  store,  42 

Error,  sources  of,  274 

Experiments,  with  advertise- 
ments, 5,  210,  247,  258; 
with  advertising  men,  280; 
on  attention,  57;  on  bal- 
ance, 164;  with  children, 
300 ;  on  class  differences, 
303;  on  color  preferences, 
98;  on  the  comic,  120; 
with  elements  of  design, 
151,  156;  on  imagery,  168; 
on  legibility,  72,  1S6;  on 
magnitude,  64;  with  me- 
chanical and  interest  in- 
centives, 127;  with  pic- 
tures, 109 ;  on  preferred 
positions,  81;  on  pulling 
power,  247,  257;  on  pur- 
chasers, 289;  on  relevant 
and  irrelevant  material, 
113;  on  suggested  activity, 


118;  on  suggestion,  229; 
with  trade  marks,  213; 
with  weights,  253 
Eye,  acuity  of,  97;  chromatic 
aberration  of,  104;  move- 
ments of,  80,  148,  180 

Feeling  of  value,  300 

Feeling  tone,  basis  of,  138; 
of  colors,  158;  of  content, 
158;  of  form,  142;  imagi- 
nation and,  168;  of  lines, 
142;  of  pictures,  173;  of 
words,  171 

Fixing  the  impression,  189 

Forgetting,  curve  of,  202;  the 
disagreeable,  140 

Form,  feeling  tone  of,  142 

Forward  law,  192 

Frequency,  association  and, 
200;  suggestion  and,  234 

Golden  section,  150 
Graphite    advertisements,    69, 
114 

Habits  and  instincts,  241 
Headlines,  58 
Holding  attention,  132 
Horizontal  lines,  145 

Ideo-motor  action,  219 

Illustrations,  106 

Imagination,  108,  168 

Incentives,  comparison  of 
mechanical  and  interest, 
127;  interest,  91;  mechani- 
cal, 60 

Instincts,  as  basis  of  appeal, 
25,  239;  nature  and  origin 


312 


INDEX 


of,  237;  relative  strength 
of,  253 

Intensity,  61 

Interest  devices,  138 

Interest  incentives,  70,  90, 
127 

Interest,  individual  differ- 
ences in,  293,  300;  memory 
and,  235;  varieties  of,  50 

Laws,  of  adaptation,  120;  of 
association,   191;   of  atten- 
tion,  56,   133;    of  balance, 
154,   164;    of  color   combi- 
nation,    162;     of     feeling; 
tone,   139;   of  psyehophys- 
ics,  67;  of  reading,  80,  117, 
137,  180;  of  resting  point, 
114;     of    suggestion,     218, 
224 
Legibility  of  type,  72,  77,  180 
Lines,  feeling  tone  of,  142 
Long  circuit  appeals,  23,  246 

Machinery    advertisements,    6 

Magazines,  40 

Magnitude,  64 

Measurement  of  appeals,  1,  5, 
253 

Mechanical  devices,  60,  89, 
127,  135 

Media,  38 

Memory,  devices  for  aiding, 
205;  for  different  kinds  of 
facts,  208;  experiments  on, 
208,  210,  212,  235;  loss  of, 
203 

Men  and  women,  as  pur- 
chasers, 289;  interests  of, 
293,  300 


Methods  of  investigation,  85? 

253,  305 
Motion,  74,  114 

Nervous  system,  17,  20 
News  interest,  39,  225 
Newspapers,  38 
Novelties,  43 
Novelty,  92 

Oblongs,  150 

Order  of  merit  method,  254 

Pages,  value  of,  83 

Persuasion,  132 

Persuasiveness,  measure- 
ments of,  258;  table  of, 
277 

Pictures,  106,  110,  173,  294 

Pleasantness,  139,  199 

Pointers,  137 

Position,  80 

Preferences,  for  colors,  98; 
for  position,  80 

Principles,  of  arrangement, 
140;  of  connection,  191;  of 
revival,  200 

Provoking  the  response,  216 

Psychophysical  law,  67 

Publicity  advertisements,  33 

Pulling  power,  2,  5,  127,  247 

Quality,  of  advertisements, 
65;  and  balance,  165;  of 
colors,  158;  of  lines,  142 

Reading  habits,  80,  137,  180 
Reading  matter,  112,  211 
Reasoning,   22,   27,   224,  278, 
284 


313 


INDEX 


References  for  further  read- 
ing, 306 
Relaxation,  177 
Repetition,  204,  235 
Response,  18,  216 
Rhythm,  152,  206 

Selling  points,  120,  278 

Sex  differences,  287 

Short  circuit  appeals,  24,  218, 

245 
Similarity,  197 
Soap  advertising,  13 
Space,  64,  78 
Spacing,  181 
Squares,  150 
Stability,  156 
Strain,  177 

Strength  of  instincts,  253 
Substitutes,  174 
Suggested  activity,  114 
Suggestion,  218,  224,  229 
Symmetry,  153 
Synesthesia,  176 


Tasks  of  an  appeal,  28 
Third  dimension,  103 
Trade  marks,  212 
Triangles,  149 
Type,   legibility  of,   72,   180; 

appropriate  use  of,  166 
Types    of    imagination,    108, 

169 


Unity,  of  advertisements, 
136;  complexity  and,  135; 
methods  of  securing,  137; 
of  sentences,  58 


Verticals,  144 

Vicarious  sacrifices  in  adver- 
tising,  213 
Vividness,  201 


White  space,  78 
Words,  171 


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